Psyche
by Tamlin
Summary: Third part of Chrysalis trilogy. Still recovering from Jonouchi's disapearance, new troubles come to visit. Is it all part of a larger plot? If so, why? Yaoi.SJ, YYY?, AM, HRibbon
1. Mistakes

Disclaimer: Yugi-oh is the property of Kazuki Takahashi, who is a genius.

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

I know, I know! I should be working on _Just Shoot Me_, but I'm in the mood to be moody. So, here's Psyche a bit earlier than I planned.

* * *

**Psyche**

**Chapter One: Mistakes**

* * *

Yami and Yugi

-0000-

Yugi lay over the side of his bed with his tri-colored hair brushing the floor and his feet propped up on the wall, watching his yami wander back and forth from the closet trying on clothes. No matter what he was wearing, how you looked at him –upside down or not- , or what he was doing, Yugi decided he had the most beautiful dark half in the world. Whoever was in charge of creation had to have put in overtime creating him.

"Aibou? Just what are these for?" Yami dangled a pair a rainbow colored suspenders in front of his nose.

"They keep your pants up. Just toss them back in that pile in the far corner Yami. Grandpa keeps giving them to me each Christmas." Yugi waved his hand back towards the closet.

"I have never noticed that your pants are in danger of falling off." Yami eyed him speculatively. "Actually, I find the problem is getting them off you quicker."

Yugi smiled and wiggled, "You didn't have a problem last night."

"I've been practicing," Yami playfully leered at him, "if you haven't noticed."

Yugi grinned gave him a matching, though upside down, leer. "I kind of noticed something like that."

Yami tipped his head, contemplating his light, "The way you were screaming last night gave me the impression that you noticed."

Yugi rolled over, blushing, "So, I'm a bit vocal."

Yami grinned and disappeared back into the closet. "A bit? Isn't that like saying Bakura is slightly off key?"

Yugi stood up, huffing, "Well, if you feel like that…!" He stalked toward the door, keeping one playful eye out for his yami.

"Well, to be honest, I'd rather feel you." Yami stuck his head out of the closet. "But you have to go to school." He ducked back into the closet. "It's too bad about that aibou. Maybe when you get home, after being stuck in that dreary school all day, we can explore this vocal thing of yours."

"Hey!" Yugi frowned at the closet, "What do you mean when I get home?" He stepped over to look inside. "You're coming too!"

A hand snaked out and dragged him in to meet a playful kiss, then suddenly he was back in his bedroom, panting, disoriented and a bit… needy. Yami leaned against the closet door frame, licking his lips and eyeing him like a rather tasty candy. "The joys of being registered as an eighteen year old." He narrowed his eyes and stalked forward, "Now, are you going to school today? Or shall we discuss just how vocal…"

Not trusting that look, and guiltily realizing that by now Honda and Yuai would be waiting for him, he darted for the door. He heard Yami's smooth laughter behind him as he hopped down the stairs. His grandpa looked up from his morning paper as he ran past, grabbing a piece of cinnamon and sugar covered toast. The shop, still dark, was still and quiet as he darted through, cramming the toast in his mouth, and, with a quick turn of his wrist, opened the shop door and found himself standing in a glorious spring day.

Down at the corner, Honda and Yuai stood. Honda was leaning back against the corner stop light and Yuai was squatting next to him, rummaging through her backpack. Already, the sidewalks were getting crowded with students wandering in the direction of school.He jogged quickly over to them.

"I honestly thought I had it right here." Yuai mumbled.

"Maybe you left it in the limo?" Honda's jaws cracked in a wide early morning yawn.

"No, no." Yuai zipped up the main compartment and unzipped another. "Kaiba would never allow me to… oh, here it is. Got it." She stood up holding a small dueling deck case in her hands.

"Hi guys!" Yugi stopped in front of them.

"Hi Yug. Is Yami coming?" Honda pushed himself away from the pole and yawned again, stretching his back and combing his fingers through his short crew cut.

Yuai glanced around, then shrugged. The case disappearing into her pocket. "We better hurry. I need to talk to the principle before class." She swung her pack to her shoulders and after quickly checking the traffic, started across the street with Honda at her side.

"Are you in trouble?" Yugi fell into step with Honda, looking curiously across at the small blond girl. Her slender shoulders were set in a straight, rigid line under her crisp school jacket. Even her hair, usually a bouncy, blond bob, seemed determined. Each strand staying inflexibly in place.

She gave him a brief glance then returned her attention to winding through the early morning pedestrians. "No."

Yugi blinked at the curt, sharp word. He looked questioningly at Honda, who shook his head mouthing "later" and bit his lip. Noticing that Honda didn't have his pack, Yugi nudged him. "Hey, where's your books?"

Honda grinned up at the warm blue sky. "You honestly think I bring them home?" He snorted and sighed dramatically, "Yug, it's spring. The weather is warm. The breeze is cool. The grass is green. The sun shines bright in the day and the moon is full and glowing at night." He rolled his eyes to look over at his friend, "What part of I was too busy getting laid to do homework do you not understand?"

"Hey, I was busy getting laid too but I mana…" Yugi stuttered to a stop as Honda winced and Yuai slammed to a halt.

She looked over at him, her eyes wide, questioning. "Yugi?" She quickly turned away, clutching the strap of her pack. "I… I have to… go… talk to the principle. I'll see you…" She bolted away through the thickening crowd of students that were migrating toward the school.

"Wait, Yuai… that came out wrong… what I mean… I…" Yugi tried to dart forward after her, only to be brought up short by Honda grabbing the back of his uniform.

"Whatever you have to say, say it later." Honda pulled him back to his side and walked slowly forward. "She's been wired tight since Kaiba dropped her off."

Yugi stopped, "Is it…?"

Honda shook his head. "No, so far no word. Nothing."

"Oh." Yugi hung his head, "I guess no news is good news right?"

Honda shook his head, "Sorry buddy, but in this case I'd say no news sort of means the worst news, and the longer the no news lasts, the worse the news is going to be later."

"I'm not going to believe that!" Yugi pressed his lips together in a determined line. "Jonouchi's going to be fine. I know it. He'll be just fine."

Honda just nodded, not pointing out the tears hitting the pavement at Yugi's feet.

-000-

Kaiba

-000-

Kaiba sat behind his desk watching the sun glitter on the waves out in Domino Bay. The sky was high and blue, darkening slightly toward the horizon where it met the curve of the ocean. Far out, just on the farthest reach of his sight, a ship was sliding through the water, heading for the city. A few pleasure boats floated merrily in the bay itself, lending the water soft, billowing, white wings. Someone being towed around in circles by a motor boat, drifted above the water, held aloft by a bright yellow parachute. It had to be nice to be able to soar into the sky on such a lush, warm day.

"… so, with the sudden lack of executive assistants. I set up a schedule of appointments to interview replacements." Jame was smiling cheerfully across the desk from him. "I have already weeded out the wackos, the under qualified, and the one's that haven't had any combat experience." She neatly set a stack of files down on his desk. "Kado has already done preliminary background checks on them, weeding out the criminals, the industry spies and the ones with any nervous habits, like mass murder. Though there was one that really looked promising. If he ever manages to get parole, we should keep him in mind."

Kaiba nodded. A flock of pigeons flew past, dancing on the spring winds. A few were… he searched his mind a second, then came up with the correct word, tumblers. Probably someone's pets that escaped and bred into the local pigeon population. That was nice. It gave the normally drab, little birds some interest. Maybe, if he set up a few feeding stations, more would come by. He could even liberate a few more tumblers into Domino City's bird society. In a few years, he'd have soft clouds of grey birds doing gymnastics outside his window every morning.

"… checked their references, and they all seem sound enough. Kado will do a more in depth check later." Jame consulted her schedule. "I've scheduled the interviews for today. The first…"

"You handle it." Kaiba swung his chair around to look at her. His normally piercing, blue eyes were dull and full of shadows. "Just put the finalists on my desk."

"I'm guessing you don't want me to take that literally." Jame jotted a note in her schedule and nodded. "You still have the Brecken Group meeting at ten and the Domino City Man of the Year Awards tonight at six." Jame eyed her boss, "I've taken the liberty to arrange a suitable escort for you."

He nodded, flicking the top of his laptop open. "Fine. I'll pick her up at five." He focused on the screen, waiting for the files to load. He really should do something about that. There had to be some way to make the whole process faster. Admittedly, the start up time on his computer was superior to any other, but still, with a bit of work, he could shave off more time. He tapped his finger on it's plastic side. Maybe make it slimmer too. That might be worth a bit more effort. After that he could see about mass marketing it. A slimmer, faster… how about weight? Yes, that would need some work as well.

"… formal wear?" Jame jotted another note to herself. "The last time you wore that tux, you spent most of the evening tugging at the sleeves."

Kaiba nodded, "After the Bracken meeting." He stared at the desktop icons. The tux really did need to be replaced. He had grown an inch in the last three months, as his aching knees and joints constantly reminded him. Why he was the victim of a nearly post-adolescent growth spurt, was probably the doing of some long ago, abnormally tall ancestor. Maybe that priest, the one he was supposed to have been. What had Yami called him? Set? Seth? Sam? The High Priest Sam? No. No matter. He truly could say he had no one to blame but himself for his complaining knees.

"Brecken Group." Jame was still writing. "Okay. I have him already working on the tux, so he'll only need final measurements."

Kaiba tapped on an icon, calling up a file from the memory. With another flick of his finger he could erase the thing. Gone. No more memory of it. Then he could change his mind and bring it back. He could do that indefinitely, destroying and recreating. If he spent a bit more time, he could completely obliterate it, removing it from even the memory of the memory. Yet, the computer would still work, merrily churning over data, never missing that one little bit of it that would be forever lost. And was that really so very bad? To forget? To never miss what was irretrievably gone?

The door of the connecting office closed with a small sigh. He was alone again. Jame was back in her office, organizing, planning and, he was sure, plotting. Since all her plotting was about how to get fired, he wasn't going to waste time worrying about it. Her friend… Rick? Tim? Whoever, had told him about the bet, and his little treasure's obsessive, organizational streak. He'd had worse employees, so, if the one secretary that he could actually rely on had a hobby of trying to hit the unemployment line, he wished her luck. It wouldn't be happening, not anytime soon.

He looked at the program file on the desktop and sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. At least now, he had something to do, something to focus on. For the next few hours, he could lose himself in clear, clean sequences of numbers. For a short time, everything would be simple, precise and under his control. Maybe, if he was lucky, Mokuba would want to stay over at a friend's house, or maybe Yuai would manage to keep him busy enough that his little brother wouldn't notice his absence. That way, he could spend the entire night here, lost peacefully in the numbers.

He glanced at the phone, then at the small desktop clock. She was in school now. Probably sitting in her desk behind Honda. Yugi leaning across the aisle to chatter happily. Anzu would be perched next to them, listening to Yugi's voice and daydreaming about Mai.

_I wonder if they even notice his empty desk anymore?_ Kaiba felt his muscles give a quick jerk of protest as his breath hissed between his teeth. His eyes winced closed in pain. His fingers, resting on the keyboard, hit a string of wrong keys. Quickly, he buried that thought, slamming it down into the basement of his mind, crashing a heavy trap door shut on it and locking it tight. _Numbers. Numbers. This program needs to be finished quickly. Concentrate._

He focused back on the screen, narrowing his mind down to dealing with the problem that was in front of him. He erased the error and with a tiny smile. In moments, he was gone, lost in the almost automatic tapping of his fingers on the keys, the nearly miraculous strings of thought composed as numbers, and the clarity of black figures dancing past his eyes on the white background. For as long as his world would let him, Seto Kaiba didn't exist. Soon enough the world would call him back, back to meetings; tuxes that didn't fit; escorts that smiled professionally, warm smiles; and a bed that loomed large and empty in the center of his empty room, in a corner of his silent house.

-000-

Bakura and Ryou

-000-

Bakura stood frowning in the center of his and Ryou's bedroom. In his hand, he held a small wooden box. It's intricately carved lid hung open, the small latch and lock lay at his feet. _Fuck! I could have sworn I left it in here._

"Ryou!" He stalked back to the closet and searched the whole shelf. "Ryou!"

"Yami?" Ryou walked in holding a large cup of tea in one hand and a CD case in the other.

"Have you, " Bakura held out the wooden box. "been playing in my things?"

Ryou shook his head. "No. That was the deal. You leave my things alone and I leave your things alone. Why?"

Bakura stepped threateningly forward, "Are you sure hikari that you haven't been playing with this?"

Startled, Ryou stepped back. "Yami, I haven't touched it. I don't think I've even seen it before."

Bakura caught his chin and forced his head back slightly to look into his eyes. "This is very, very important Ryou. Have you touched this box?"

"Yami, I didn't touch it." Ryou shivered as Bakura continued to stare into his eyes. He could feel the old spirit shuffling around in his head, sorting through his memories, prying into a few places that Ryou didn't really want him.

"Fuck." Bakura breathed softly, letting Ryou's chin drop. He turned and looked vaguely around the room, looking a bit bewildered. "If it wasn't you, then who? It's not like it could walk out on it's own."

Ryou hurriedly put a few steps between himself and his yami. "What, Yami, what are you looking for."

Bakura gave him a distracted, irritated look, then shook his head and stepped away. "I've put enough protection on this place that even I would have problems getting in here." He muttered as he looked out the window suspiciously. "But there's no sign that anyone broke in." He looked back at the closet. "So where the fuck did it go?"

"Where did what go Yami?" Ryou took a tentative step forward. "Maybe I could help look…"

"NO!" Bakura lunged forward and grabbed him by the shoulders. "If you see it hikari, you will not touch it. Do you understand me!" He shook Ryou hard, causing the mug of tea to smash down onto the floor. "Don't even come close to it!"

Frightened, Ryou twisted in his grip. "I won't. I promise I won't touch it. Please!"

Bakura suddenly yanked him close into a hug. "Just don't touch it Ryou. It's dangerous. You must never touch it."

"What?" Ryou, now half smothered in a desperate, protective hug managed to ask.

"The Eye. The Millennium Eye." Bakura shivered, holding his light closer. "It's dangerous tenshi and, now, it's missing."

* * *

Ta Da! The first chapter is up and the story is running! Yay, me! Yes, I will wrap up _Just Shoot Me, _but I really needed to do this. I have leaving Jonouchi in sadistic limbo like that, and I feel guilt about making Kaiba dangle. So on with the Kaiba torture and the Yugi torture, and the Yami torture and yes, I will torture my OCs too! Woot! Go me! 


	2. Obsessions

Disclaimer: Yugi-oh is the property of Kazuki Takahashi, who is a genius.

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

**Psyche**

Chapter Two: Obsessions

* * *

The desk wasn't empty any more. The teachers, bowing to a logic far greater than their own, which also held their paychecks, had reshuffled the class so no desk stood in empty silence in the middle of the class, like a unhealed wound. The desk had been removed and placed in some far flung corner of Domino High. The seating chart shifted to accommodate the missing desk. A new student sat nervously behind Miho Kasaka, trying to pretend that only a few weeks ago another had unenthusiastically contemplated Miho's chubby shoulders and had the dubious privilege of having to be in front of Tori Katota, who smelled faintly of the red peppers that his family ground into paste in their small shop behind the school. 

Yugi tried his best not to look over there. He could manage, only if he didn't look. If he didn't look, he wouldn't see, and if he didn't see that the school's powers that be had officially accepted the police report that a certain Jonouchi Katsuya was the victim of foul play and they had given up trying to find said Jonouchi Katsuya's remains a week ago. He could still hold on to the belief that Jo would bounce in some morning, howl about his missing desk and then try to bum some lunch money off him because he left his sitting at home on Kaiba's overly ornate hall table.

It was easier to pretend this when Yami was sitting just in front of him, then he could just focus on his other. In the two weeks since Jonouchi had been officially listed as missing and most likely deceased, he had become an expert in his Yami's hair. He had hours of looking at the way the soft strands swept up in graceful arcs. He had memorized the reverse widows peak that shadowed down the back of his dark's head in three elegant triangles. He could now, with little effort, picture the precise placement of each wild spike, where his hair would shift color, where those little hairs were that no amount of brushing, spraying or gelling could tame.

It also frightened him that the only one who really seemed to share this obsession, with pretending and minute detail as a distraction, was Kaiba. Mokuba had sat in his living room, distractedly swirling a chocolate milkshake and telling about his big brother's sudden obsession with everything and anything, except Jonouchi. Kaiba had apparently spent three hours staring at a ball point pen, twirling it in his fingers, taking it apart, inspecting each piece, all without blinking. The no blinking part was what bothered Mokuba the most.

"Aren't you supposed to blink? Don't you go blind or something if you never blink?" Mokuba had asked, searching Yami's face as if it held some answer.

Yugi wondered if he forgot to blink when he stared at Yami's head.

Yami, with the panache of someone who had already died and gotten over it, seemed more irritated then grieved by Jonouchi's passing. Killing Jo was a personal insult to the pharaoh and he intended to punish the person who had dared to harm his friend. Yugi shuddered at the things that roved through his Yami's mind in the middle of the night. The one thing that didn't seem to even rate a passing thought however, was Jo himself. If the subject was brought up, Yami would look sympathetic, offer unending support for his grieving light, but didn't seem upset himself.

"Death isn't that bad aibou. Dying is a bit unpleasant, but death itself?" Yami shrugged, "It can be a bit… dull. He's probably in the Land of the Dead having lunch with his ancestors." Yami had look a tad envious there, but it was quickly smothered in a reassuring hug.

He'd gotten a lot of hugs in the past few weeks. He almost existed from hug to hug. Hugs from his yami and his grandpa in the morning, Anzu hugged him the moment he got into school, Ryou would wrap him in a hug if they met in the hall way, and once he was almost certain Bakura had hugged him. He couldn't be quite certain it was the thief. It could have been Ryou having a really bad hair day, but he was almost certain, and after he had checked all his pockets, his backpack and accounted for all his possessions, he'd wondered if Bakura was still trying to work off his bad luck.

"Hey, Yug, can I see your notes?" Honda perched on the desk next to him, effectively blocking his view of the desk that wasn't there to be seen.

"My notes?" Yugi wondered if he even had notes anymore. Scholarship and he had parted ways a little while back. It was difficult to memorize your yami's hair and take notes at the same time. "Maybe you should try asking Yuai for hers, mine are… a… messy."

"Didn't take any, huh?" Honda shrugged. "Okay. Want to copy mine once I get them?"

Yugi nodded, pulling his mind out of the quagmire it tended to fall into so easily. He could go for whole minutes sometimes without thinking about his missing friend. "Sure, I've been a bit… tired lately."

"Yami keeping you up?" Honda grinned, his eyes teasing.

Yugi laughed, "I now know why he had so many wives. Poor women, they were sadly overworked."

"Thinking of sharing?" Honda resisted the urge to glance over at Yuai's desk. Ever since this morning, he'd been wondering what was happening. The look of shock on Yuai's face had told him that whatever was happening hadn't been known by Yugi's supposed girlfriend.

"No." Yugi frowned, and poked Honda's knee playfully, "He's my yami. Get your own."

"What! And deal with my own sex crazed Egyptian!" Honda plastered a look of overblown shock on his face. "Not me!"

"It takes a strong man to face a yami in the morning." Yugi curled one arm in a strong man pose.

Honda reached forward and tested Yugi's total lack of muscle. "Then how do you do it?"

"Stamina." Yugi lifted his chin, "I may be small, but I've got staying power."

"Oh, do you…" Honda's grin widened in preparation for his next move, but was interrupted as Mr. Yoshida walked in with Yuai at his heels.

"Settle down class. Settle down."

Yuai hurried to her desk, quickly slipped her backpack under he seat and sat down with a quick smile to Yugi and Honda.

"Alright, now lets begin with cosine functions. Now who remembers what we talked about yesterday?"

-000-

Yuai

-000-

She was sitting on the top of the stairs waiting, as she ended up waiting every night, for Kaiba to come home. She couldn't remember how this ritual had started, probably something Mokuba had asked her to do, but she couldn't end it. So after she coaxed a reluctant Mokuba into eating his dinner, doing his homework and getting ready for bed, she would sit here and wait and watch the shadows from the drive lights shiver through the trees, listen to the soft hush of the mansion, and think.

Tonight she had the small dueling deck she'd been holding in her pocket all day to think about. Kaiba, in a screaming paroxysm between helpless fury and grief, had thrown it at her yesterday, telling her to give it to Yugi. She hadn't been able to. She had meant to give it to him when they first met, but the happy look on Yugi's face had stopped her. She knew the moment she handed it to him the bleak, frozen look, that had been so much a part of everyone lately, would steal all the joy out of him. Later, after his little…well, no big… goof, she hadn't really wanted to talk to him, afraid of what he might say. Afraid he'd tell her who he'd been sleeping with. She had a feeling it was Yami, but she couldn't be entirely sure. There were a lot of girls and guys who watched Yugi with barely concealed interest, and if it was one of them... Yami, she could accept. Somehow it seemed right that one half of a soul should be with the other half. Another, she couldn't accept that. But who was she to complain?

She tumbled the deck over in her hands again looking at it, Jonouchi's deck. Should she give it to Yugi? She was sure he'd treasure it, but what about Kaiba. He'd want Jo's deck, in time, when things weren't so sharp and painful.

She was truthful enough to say she didn't want to give it up, even to someone as close to her as Yugi. It would be the final statement that Jo wasn't coming back. That he would no longer need the deck, so it would become nothing more than a remembrance to collect dust up on a shelf and be sadly looked at. That thought made her angry. Angry because Jo was not someone to sit placidly on a shelf and collect dust and he wouldn't want to just be written off like a check that had been cashed, stamped and returned to it's sender.

She knew Kaiba still had men hunting for Jo. The file that sat in the middle left drawer of his desk, filled with each minute detail of the search, kept growing. Kado's security staff and tripled in the last weeks as Kaiba demanded more and more from already overworked investigators. Honestly, the resources that he was throwing at the search and the sheer determination he showed in plowing through every obstacle, was frightening. Almost as frightening as the fear that lurked in his eyes.

Mokuba, fresh from his stint in Sri Lanka, was bewildered by the sudden change in his life. His stoic brother had become about as cuddly as a marble pillar. His friend was gone and every time he asked what happened, Kaiba would all but bolt out of the room leaving him lost and questioning. At least he wasn't destructive anymore. Instead he had taken up meditation and yoga. A few times she even found him humming strangely while sitting in a full lotus position. She almost wished he'd break something, anything, just so that there would be something familiar in the house.

Yuai reached into her pocket and pulled out the other thing that bothered her. After the initial shock had worn off, Honda had remembered they had collected Yugi and her things from their hotel room. She had only given her things a passing glance before tossing them into the bottom of her closet. About a week ago, she had been looking for a stray sock and bumped into the bag containing the improbable statues of her friends. She couldn't laugh at them this time, so she stuffed them back into the bag and found that something else was in there. In the bottom of the bag, wrapped carefully in tissue paper, was the statue of the Magician of Black Chaos.

The statue in itself was not exactly the most horrifying thing she had ever encountered, and after a bit of thought she could come up with a plausible reason for it to be in the bag, but what scared her was how she got nervous if it wasn't near her. She kept it in her pack at school and her pocket at home. At night, it sat next to her pillow. In the morning, she would wake with it clutched in her hand like a protective charm. She, who hadn't even had a make believe friend as a child; who didn't believe, until three yamis suddenly popped into existence under her nose, in magic; suddenly had the worlds strangest teddy bear and she was terrified of it. Not so much that she believed it would come to life and do horribly, unspeakable things to her, but because how desperately she clung to it. She hated being dependent on anyone or anything, but she depended on a six inch resin statue of a strangely dressed magician.

The shadows on the walls shifted in the breeze. A passing guard passed on his rounds, briefly checking the front door before continuing on. The air conditioning system of the house clicked on with a low, almost inaudible hum. A second later, cool air wafted around her shoulders from the vent above her head. The shadows shifted again as a set of lights swept up the drive. Kaiba was finally home.

-000-

Yami

-000-

_Betrayer._

_Yami shook his head, ignoring the soft whisper, walking through the shadows. Cold stone surrounded him, reminding him of his own soul room, but different… softer, cleaner, less aged. He shivered and continued walking. He was in some kind of hall, he decided, and either it was night time, or he was back in the Shadow Realm. It didn't feel like the Shadow Realm. He paused and realized he'd fallen asleep again._

This is getting to be a bad habit.

_He glanced around and decided to let his subconscious get whatever it was on his mind, off it. _Something to do with Egypt probably, unless this is another one of those Indiana Jones dreams andSean Connery was going to show up and make me look for table ware again. Damn pest. How the hell should I know where someone misplaced a cup. Couldn't he just go get another. There are plenty in the world. For Ra's sake, supermarket's have them. He could probably pick up his Ben Gay while he's there._ He shrugged and trudged down the hall wondering if he was in a section of his own palace. _Too bad it isn't light. I'd like to see this._ He ran his fingers over the stone work._

_Betrayer._

_He considered that word, since his subconscious seemed determined to make it an issue in this dream. As far as he knew, he had never betrayed anyone. He had done his best to be a honorable and diligent king. He did feel bad about Kuru Eruna and what had happened to Bakura, but he hadn't been pharaoh then. His father would have to answer for that. So what did the voice want?_

_He suddenly, much to his nose's pained annoyance, found a door in front of him. He gave it a push and found himself standing in the middle of a crowd of people. The sun was beating mercilessly down, much as it did everyday in Egypt. The people were wearing clothes that were the same as the peasants used to wear back in the days when he was king. The buildings that loomed large in front of him were… home. _Sweet Maat, I'm home.

_He looked hungrily around. There, over by that pillar with the well next to it, was the little pastry stall he would sneak out of the palace to visit and buy sticky things that his tutors would shriek in horror over. Over there was the horse trough he had once pushed Shimon into when he and Seth wanted to escape an dull day of lessons. There, by that wall, leading into the palace, he had his first kiss, a young, though older than him at the time, noble woman, who he had eventually made his third wife. Pepi, with long black hair that hung like a curtain down to her knees and eyes as soft as a doe. Not the most brainy of his wives, but sweet and quiet and restful to be near._

_The crowd seemed to be going someplace, and since he had no true destination, he let them carry him along, basking in his memories. Every place he looked more memories came rushing back. A small chip in a wall were he and Mahado had scrambled over dragging a chariot wheel that they had stolen for a dare when they were nine. The small flowering tree that waved merrily next to a bush that he would snatch flowers off to present to his mother. An old shattered statue that the children of the palace had used to meet at and leave messages scratched in nearly illegible hieroglyphics on scraps of wood, parchment or any other available surface._

_Suddenly, he was alone, standing in front of his own palace. He looked quickly around, wondering where the crowd had gone._

_Betrayer._

_His subconscious still had issues. He looked behind him and found that he was standing in a courtyard filled with attendants, who were scurrying around as if he had just returned from a long trip. Pack animals were being unloaded, guards leaned wearily against equally weary mounts, slaves darted around offering refreshments. No one however, paid him any attention. Puzzled he walked in the door that stood in front of him. _

_The palace was shady and cool after being out in the sun. Courtiers swayed gracefully through the halls, dressed in cool linens. A few attendants slipped around them carrying messages, cool drinks and occasional gifts as they all hid from the midday heat._

_"Papa!" A small figure raced wildly out from behind a passing group of women and slammed into him, causing him to stagger slightly. "Papa home!"_

_He looked down into a pair of brilliantly happy ruby eyes, that were the exact mirror of his own. Tiny hands held tight to his leg as the little one gave him a huge smile._

_"Papa home!"_

_Betrayer._

-000-

Honda and Yugi

-000-

"Haski, Honda, she had lunch with Haski." Yugi poked at his slice of pizza. "We always have lunch together. I brought a game!"

"Maybe she didn't want to play games." Honda poured himself more Coke from a pitcher, wondering if Yugi was in any condition to get the double meaning of his statement. His short friend was rather wound up.

"She could have just said so," Yugi popped a pepperoni in his mouth, "she didn't have to avoid me like that."

Honda shrugged.

"She's acting strange. First this morning and then at lunch. Do you think…" Yugi glanced over to where Jo would usually be sitting wolfing down the pizza, "She's probably just upset or something. Right?"

"Yeah. Just upset."

Honda watched Yugi tiredly as he shoved the slice of pizza in his mouth. He hadn't missed the quick flick of his friend's eyes over to where no one was sitting. He really doubted that Yami was there, so it only meant one thing. Jo.

Unlike Yugi, who refused to even acknowledge to himself that he thought Jo was dead, or Kaiba, who was driving himself insane with grief, he had another viewpoint. It was based on the unwavering belief that Jo was a survivor. After all the shit his old man had dumped on him; after being basically being abandoned by his mother and sister; after dealing with psychos, street gangs, being a mind slave and all the other collected weirdness of living, Honda was certain Jo would show up. Maybe not in the best of shape. Probably a bit tattered at the edges, but Jo would show up. And until that moment, when his friend came back and told them who the ass was that had done this, so they could hunt the piece of shit down and kill him, he could wait.

"So how's Yami? Didn't he want to come out tonight" He shifted subjects deliberately. Better to leave Yugi to his little games, even when he didn't realize he was in the middle of one. He only hoped the pay off was worth the wreckage.

Yugi instantly smiled. "He's fine, probably watching Asian Stock Market Beat and scoping out new places to invest our money."

"Haven't changed much has he? Gets a body and still plasters himself to the financial report." Honda settled back in the red vinyl booth, propping his legs up on the seat.

"It's a game." Yugi scooped up another slice of pizza and started picking the onions off.

Honda wondered if he even realized he was doing it. Jo, for reasons only Jo would ever know, loved tons of onions on his pizza. Every time they came out to Pizza Heaven, he'd whine and beg for the onions off other everyone's slices, pile them on his own in a slimy heap, then crunch into them with a greedy, mindless joy. Yugi was well trained. After years of Jo's onion gobbling, Yugi automatically piled his onions on the pizza plate.

Jo would laugh about that when he got back and heard. He'd probably roll of the seat and then sit on the floor howling with glee at Yugi piling onions for him while he was gone. He'd snicker about it for weeks, making little hard to miss comments about onion bank accounts and onion collections. If he could get Kaiba to spring for it, he'd probably send Yugi an onion pizza at three in the morning, thereby annoying the hell out of Yami, which would result in Jo scampering around…

…Jo didn't know about Yami. He hadn't been there. Honda couldn't even imagine what his friend would do when he got back to find the pharaoh, Bakura and Marik all had their own bodies.

"… we've actually tripled our money in the last week." Yugi stuffed the now onionless slice in his mouth and gulped down some Coke. "We're going to buy some cards that Yami's had his eye on. There's also a new one that just came out that's sort of like the Blue Eyes. A real limited release. There's only one. Yami really wants it."

"What is it?" Honda could already see the carnage. Getting the god cards should have cured Yami of wanting exotically powerful cards, but then again, maybe not. Maybe this time they'd have the Apocalypse. He just hoped Jo would get back in time for the rivers of boiling lava and the rain of toads. He'd need someone to watch his back.

"Lady of the Realm." Yugi frowned thoughtfully as he slurped the last of his Coke out of the bottom of his glass. "I'm not sure what it does, but Yami really, really wants it."

Honda poured Yugi more Coke, "He'll get it then. He has a habit of getting things he wants."

The kid was unconscious again, which really annoyed him, so he kicked the limp body and ambled out of the room. The TV was already on, a cheery fabric softener commercial yodeling merrily about spring time freshness. He caught up the remote, thumped down on the couch, and surfed for a football game. He yawned and stretched out on the couch. "Really Kaiba, I thought you'd at least have a fuck toy with a bit of stamina."

He considered watching a boxing match, but since he didn't recognize either of the boxers, he flipped past. There were no games on right now. "Bummer, ain't it Kaiba. Hundreds of channels and not a single shitty thing on." He sat up and rubbed his face tiredly.

"What am I gonna do to ya Kaiba?" He looked over to where he had dropped his tool box after fixing a busted radiator on his car. If he remembered correctly, he'd left a couple of small gardening tools in the bottom of it. "Ya gotta pay your debts, ya know. One of the first things I learned in this life. If ya owe, ya gotta pay. I gave ya everything Kaiba, and ya destroyed my life. Ya owe me, so ya gotta pay."

He got up and went over to the tool box and started rummaging through it. "I think I know something that will make you bleed Kaiba, make you hurt. You ain't walkin' away clean this time. This time I get to destroy your life."

* * *

Review! Yes, you. I'm talking to you. You've been lurking long enough. Just hit that little review link and share your thoughts. Unless their flames. Those get deleted. 

**Clarity:** I have problems reading angst too, which is why I always work for the happy ending. Stop worrying and enjoy, good will win, somehow...

**Hikari Raine:** Yes, here I am, back, ignoring my poor Just Shoot Me in favor of torturing other characters. I'll be updating that one soon, but most of my energy is going to now go to this story. authoress wanders off smileinghappily,"I'm loved"

**Hi:** Hey! That's dudette :) Thanks, I really like it when people love my fics. Kaiba unfortunatly is going to dangle for quite awhile, but you'll probably enjoy every moment of Kaiba torture that I toss in. He's just so fun to make misserable.


	3. Gifts

Disclaimer: Yugi-oh is the property of Kazuki Takahashi, who is a genius.

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

**Psyche**

Chapter Three: Gifts

* * *

-00-

Jame

-00-

"As you have noticed I have had extensive experience in all facets of acquisitions." The woman tapped her finger on the relevant part of her résumé. Her voice, a high, piercing, nasal whine, cut through the ear plugs that Jame had unobtrusively slid into her ears a few minutes into the interview.

"Yes, we are quite impressed." And she was too. This woman fit all the criteria; she was impeccably qualified; she was brilliant and ambitious without being psychotically inclined; she was socially so inept that she insulted nearly everyone she encountered; and, most importantly, she had a voice that could cut through steel girders. Jame loved her. She wanted to clone her and hire each of the clones to be Kaiba's assistants.

"I also am proficient at overseeing all aspects of accounting, investing and internal budgeting." Her voice drilled small holes of pain through James skull.

_Lovely. Perfect. Wonderful_. She stood up and smiled professionally, "I'm sure you'll be hearing from us in a matter of days. I'll be putting your file on Mr. Kaiba's desk this afternoon for final approval."

The woman glided elegantly to her feet. She looked the part of a assistant to one of the worlds largest corporations. She was a tall, willowy brunet, with her hair neatly swept back in a conservative bun. She was dressed impeccably in a dark blue, Armani suit with understated Italian leather shoes. Till the moment she opened her mouth, she was the picture of cool, professional elegance.

"I will call tomorrow then." She deposited a copy of her résumé on Jame's desk and snapped her briefcase shut.

"Mr. Kaiba is very busy. You should wait till Monday. If you haven't heard from us then, give Mr. Tanaka a call. He's head of Human Resources." Jame waved her out the door.

"Fine. I'll call Monday." The woman shrilled and sailed out of her office and down the hall."

Jame retreated into her office, carefully closing the door, and settled into her chair with a evil smile on her face. "Rent to own. Ha!" She looked side-long towards Kaiba's door. "That makes three I've found so far."

Ms. Shrill-voice was her latest find from the applicant pool. The first had been a lovely young man, with a charming habit of twitching nervously. In the short amount of time she had allotted for his interview, he had nearly driven her to strangle him, just to stop the constant fidgeting. The second, an older lady that looked like the stereotypical granny, had been a winner the second she thumped down her oversized purse, eyed the tiny bag of cheetos that had been sitting in the trashcan, and started lecturing Jame on her diet in a steely tone that would have cowed a raging tyrannosaurus rex.

Jame cooed in pleasure. Only two more to go. Kaiba couldn't say that she had hired incompetents. Each of her choices was the top of their fields. They all fit the guidelines that Tanaka had unearthed from a dusty file that still had the name Gozoburo Kaiba scribbled on most of the forms. Ms. Shrill was an expert in acquisitions and development, with an expertise on hostile take over strategies. Mr. Fidget was an expert in organizing R&D departments and internal budgeting. The steel granny was the best there was at public relations. Just a couple more and Kaiba would be sitting neatly at the head of a well organized, well staffed, intensely annoying office.

She just needed two more. Only two more, annoying, sure to drive Kaiba insane employees and she'd be finished with Project Rent To Own. She just needed two more, one for staffing and the other for overseeing internal and external security. Kado was pushing for that one. He'd been dealing directly with an overstressed, emotionally unstable Kaiba for weeks and had handed her his own personal wish list of qualifications, nearly begging her to find someone, anyone to be a go between. She hadn't found anyone that was sufficiently qualified and annoying, yet.

"That's right, I'll get you yet. I'll show you… Not fire me. I deserve to be fired! I've worked hard and this is the thanks I get! Ha! Double ha!" Jame picked up the résumé from her desk and neatly filed it into a folder and put it in the file cabinet. "You'll rue the day you didn't fire me!"

-00-

Yami

-00-

Yami eyed the group of small children as they inspected a display of small brightly colored stuffed animals. It was nearly closing time and the small band of urchins had trailed in a few minutes ago, followed by their exhausted mothers. From the slightly frosting smeared faced, to the sugar high, bright eyes, Yami was guessing that this was the tail end of a birthday party that had been held in the park down the street.

He eyed the group a second more, noting the women's careful watch over their precious, frosting laden darlings, and returned to his text book. Oddly, things hadn't changed much in the way of schooling since the last time he'd had to study. There were still long lists of people who did things at times that few ever cared to remember. Math was still math, though this time he didn't have the added bonus of macabre calculations for his own tomb. Teachers still drummed literature into heads that were too busy thinking about real life to have interest in pretend lives.

Then there was sex ed. The class that every student was supposed to take. The class that in their deepest hearts, interested his classmates the most. The class that would have made him swear off sex, if he hadn't been so very well versed in it before he stepped in the classroom doors. He scowled down at the text book in front of him. Whoever had wrote this thing had obviously never had great sex in their lives. No where was there any reference to the intense feelings, pleasures and sensations that were so much part of sex. All that the text offered was a general, vague term of orgasm. It sounded like a geological formation, not the mind frizzing, sanity shaking, oh-gods-I-think-I-died pleasure he was acquainted with.

A small hand deposited a small stuffed toy lion on top of the diagram of correct interpersonal communication –which seemed odd to place in a text about sex-.

"Dis one, please."

Yami leaned over the counter to look down into the face of a tiny little girl. "Yes, miss, right away." He smiled and put the little lion in a bag and took the money the child held up to him. "Anything else I can help you with?"

"No, sir. Dank you." The bag was pulled off the counter and tiny footsteps pattered away.

"Papa!"

Yami jerked around, half expecting a child to cannon ball into his legs. No one was there. The children were being ushered out of the shop by their mothers. No one else was in the store. He shook his head and rubbed his eyes.

He hadn't been getting nearly enough sleep lately and it was catching up to him. _All work and no sleep makes Yami a tired pharaoh._ He needed to rest. Maybe an entire day of laying in bed with all the shades pulled down, napping and dozing and catching up on all the sleep he was loosing. Maybe he should just retreat into the Shadow Realm, lay by his river and let his tired mind be lulled to sleep. Perhaps he could find Mahado and sit, eat baklava and sip tea while chatting with his friend. No, that would to too far, he needed to stay close.

Since Jo had disappeared, Bakura, Marik and he had been keeping careful watch over the hikaris. They rotated in shifts, but three yamis taking eight hour watches and still trying to maintain a mortal's schedule of school, chores and work, was draining. Most of the time Marik didn't even bother staying in the mortal realm, preferring to rest in the shadows to having the strain of maintaining a mortal form. He only slid back into the mortal realm to spend time with Malik, before returning to the shadows. Bakura stayed in his physical form, but skipped school, work and nearly every other activity except lolling on a couch, watching daytime soaps with glassy, stunned eyes and nibbling on popcorn. After listening to the tomb robber seriously discuss how Jessica was trying not to let her husband know that she was carrying his brother's child, Yami wondered if there was some kind of intervention treatment that he and Marik could do after they hunted down the person who had taken Jo.

He rubbed his eyes and refocused on the text in front of him. Just twenty more minutes and he'd be able to go upstairs, have a cup of over-caffeinated tea and try to stay awake and be with Yugi. His light was fragile, and getting more fragile by the day. The stress of Jonouchi's disappearance was wearing on his small other and he was worried Yugi would grieve himself sick.

The bell over the door tinkled merrily as the mailman nudged his way into the shop. "Mr. Yami Moto?" The man looked doubtfully at the package in his hand. He'd been delivering mail to the Motos for years and this was the first time he had one for a Yami Moto.

"Yes," Yami closed his book, squishing the relieved feeling he had about missing out on the wonders of interpersonal communication charts.

"Sign here." The postman pushed a clipboard across the counter and tapped on a large X.

Yami signed and was rewarded with a small rectangular package with postmarks from Egypt. He nodded as the man turned and walked quickly out of the shop and turned the package over in his hands. Something metal thunked around inside. He pried off the tape, ripped off the brown paper packaging and opened the box. Inside there was a carefully folded piece of paper and the Millennium Necklace.

_She sent them through the mail?_ Yami frowned and picked up the paper. It was a letter from Isis.

My Pharaoh,

_Who is presently working as counter help in a game shop._

I hope this finds you well.

_So that you can torment me yourself._

I have seen that you will need the Millennium Necklace.

_As well as many other things that you no doubt will spring on me at the worst time you can manage._

You need to give this to the young blond girl that Yugi is attached too.

_So you've stooped to being a voyeur in Yugi's personal life, hmmm._

I cannot come to Domino City myself to advise you on this matter.

_Halleluiah! I suddenly feel much better._

Your Servant,

_I need to get better help._

Isis Ishtar

_The conniving wench._

Yami picked up the necklace and rolled it over in his hand, then shrugged and shoved it in his pocket. He may not like Isis, but he did trust her and if she said Yuai needed the Millennium Necklace, then it was probably best if the necklace was placed in Yuai's care as soon as he saw the girl. He glanced at the clock and noticed that it was time to close. He flicked off the lights, went to the door and stepping out, locked it behind him. He quickly looked around the street, noting the sun had set into a soft twilight glow of purples, blues and startling oranges, then turned and walked towards Kaiba's.

-00-

Kaiba

-00-

He hadn't wanted to come home. Yes, Mokuba was waiting for him. Yes, he could use a full nights sleep. Yes, eating a meal that didn't come off a food cart pushed by Mrs. Tsube was tempting, but he dreaded walking in his own front door.

_"You're early." Jo bounded up the hall toward him, his amber tinted eyes laughing. "What happened? You get fired for being late again?"_

He closed his eyes banishing the ghost, as he set his briefcase down on the floor next to the door.

_"What's the matter, ain't you glad to see me?" Hands pulled at his lapel, trying to draw him forward into a kiss. The soft scent of summer sun whispered around him. Warm breath brushed against his cheek._

"Please, leave me alone." Kaiba breathed, already feeling lips that weren't there brushing across his. "Please." He didn't know what he was begging for anymore, for those lips to go, or for them to stay. Either way hurt.

"You got a package." Yuai's voice floated down the stairs to him. She was sitting at the top waiting for him, like she had every night for weeks. To his horror and his relief, the phantom lips vanished.

He grunted a reply and scooped the mail off the table, a stack of invitations to various social functions, a couple of letters from business men who fancied themselves his friends, an advertisement from a rival company that he'd have to look at later, and a small brown box with messy writing. He tossed the invitations and the letters back onto the table and took the advertisement and the box into the living room. Soft footsteps followed him.

"Mokuba is out back. The pool man came by today and readied the pool for the season."

Kaiba nodded and started prying open the package. "Who's out there with him?"

"The gardener. I don't know how to swim."

Inside the grubby paper was a equally grubby box. He considered tossing it into the trash. It was probably some pathetic fool who wanted to make friends by sending worthless junk in the mail to him. "Take lessons."

"Yes, sir." The feet padded away toward the kitchen. "The cook said dinner will be ready in a half hour. Will that be okay?"

Kaiba nodded as he pried open the box. "Fi…"

A finger fell out and rolled across the floor. A note was tied around it.

**_You owe me and you will pay._**

The box dropped to the floor as Kaiba stumbled back away from the finger. "No, no, no."

"Kaiba?" Footsteps approached him. "Oh, my god…"

Kaiba couldn't hear what she said after that. Someone kept screaming and screaming and screaming.

-00-

Yami

-00-

There were cop cars everywhere. At least that was the impression that Yami had when he rounded the corner to the Kaiba mansion. They lined both sides of the street, with their slowly flashing blue and red lights. Officers huddled in groups or hurried around in the darkening evening as the streetlights flickered into life.

Fingering the necklace, he walked up toward the main gates. There were more officers inside, rushing in and out the front door, carrying small bags and electronic gear.

One rather emaciated officer noticed him and rushed over, "You. What are you doing here?"

Yami eyed him carefully, briefly considered using magic to get what he wanted, then opted for the truth. _Yugi will be proud._ "I'm here to see my friend, Yuai." He nodded toward the hive of activity. "She lives here."

"No one is allowed on the property." He glared suspiciously at Yami. "What do you want to see her about?"

Yami weighed Yugi being proud against sending the idiot to the Shadow Realm. _Proud hikari, idiot officer, proud hikari, idiot officer._ Maybe Yugi would be proud if he used magic to see Yuai, but didn't send the officious, rude fool to the Shadow Realm. He grinned. _Proud hikari._

He looked deep into the shallow pools of the police officer's eyes. "I'm allowed in. I'm a good friend of the family. They need me here." His eyes glowed, shadows swirled lightly around his feet, nibbling on the officers shoes.

"A good friend." The officer blinked, then nodded. "They need you inside." The officer motioned him to go ahead of him, calling to his fellows. "He's allowed in. He's a friend of the family, they'll need him."

A few of the officers looked curious, but hurried on their way. Yami strolled inside. There were more officers swarming around the living room, taking pictures of the floor.

The fool that was escorting him, motioned for him to go up the stairs. "The family is up stairs in Mr. Kaiba's home office."

Yami, wondering what was so interesting about a floor, glided up the stairs and down the hall to where a light shined beneath a door. Mokuba and Yuai were sitting in an armchair. Mokuba was curled into Yaui's small lap, with his eyes glued to a door that led into another room.

Yuai, looking squished, was rubbing Mokuba's back making soothing sounds. "It'll be alright. You know he's been pushing himself lately. It's probably good that he's resting right now."

"But Seto, he doesn't …do that. He just doesn't do that." Mokuba whispered back, his eyes never leaving the door.

Yami stepped in. Yuai jerked a bit as she noticed him, alerting Mokuba who pried his eyes away to look at him. "What happened?"

Mokuba shivered, looking back and forth between him and the door. "Seto… he.. uh… He's not feeling too good."

Yuai wiggled out from under Mokuba, "Is Yugi here?"

"No." Yami fingered the necklace in his pocket. "I wanted to talk to you myself."

"Oh." She looked toward the door. "This might not be the best time."

Yami stepped around her and looked into the other door. It opened into a bedroom. Seto was laying quietly on the bed covered by a blanket. Yami frowned and walked through the door.

"No, don't. Don't wake him." Mokuba rushed after him, whispering urgently. Yuai padded at his side, looking worried.

Kaiba was dead pale, laying his back with his hands neatly folded over his stomach. Yami stepped closer and nudged him. The brunet never twitched an eyelash. Yami nudged him again harder with the same results.

"Somehow I don't think me waking him up is going to be an issue." He turned and looked at them as they stood huddled together. "Tell me. The police are down stairs. Kaiba is unconscious upstairs and you two look like your on a death watch." He knew it was a nasty trick. He knew Yugi would probably tear verbal strips out of his hide for it later, but he called on a bit of shadow magic and loomed threateningly over the two cowering forms in front of him. "Tell me what has happened!"

"A finger. They sent a finger." Mokuba babbled hysterically. "They mailed it to Seto. He opened the mail and it was in a box." Mokuba shivered, starting to cry as he poured out the story to Yami.

Yuai's eyes were on Yami's feet. She wondered if Mokuba could see the shadows. Even in the room's dimmed light, they gathered around Yami, almost like a puddle of darkness. The more Mokuba talked, the darker the puddle became, the more fingers the puddle extended. Around them, normally quiet shadows shifted, condensed, gathered.

"…drugged him and carried him…"

They had teeth. She doubted Mokuba would be standing there, spilling his guts to his friend if he noticed the teeth. They were sharp, long teeth. Each one like a dagger of obsidian. They coiled around eyeing the fools in the room with unseen eyes and those shadow teeth.

"Enough." Yuai stepped forward. Mokuba was her charge and shadows weren't allowed. Magically appearing yamis were one thing. Toothy shadows were another. The world was crazy enough with fingers arriving in boxes, screaming bosses and hysterical Mokubas. There had to be a limit and those shadows were hers. "Let's go back to the office." She pried Mokuba away from Yami.

"Was it Jonouchi's?" Yami seemed to dwindle as the shadows slithered away, calming back down to normal, cozy patches of darkness.

"We don't know." Mokuba wrapped his arms around himself. "They have to do…tests." He wobbled to the armchair and curled himself back into it. Yuai slipped out the door and into the hall.

Yami folded himself elegantly into another chair. "Are you both okay?"

Mokuba nodded hesitantly, "Yeah, I'm okay. But big brother…"

"Will be fine." Yami tapped his chin thoughtfully. "We need to talk to the others. They need to know."

Mokuba looked up hopefully. "Do you think they'd come over?" He looked over toward his brother's still form. "They could sleep over. We've got plenty of room and we can go swimming and I got this neat game and we could order pizza, or Chinese food."

"I don't know. We'll have to ask." Yami eyed the phone doubtfully. "Do you have their numbers?"

-00-

Yugi

-00-

It wasn't so much a party, as it was a huddle. The police, after photographing nearly everything in the entire mansion, powdering all the surfaces with black soot, and swabbing every substance that was available to be swabbed, had disappeared in a glitter of flashing lights and growling engines. Kaiba, still sleeping the sleep of the heavily sedated, still lay quietly upstairs in his room. Mokuba, Yugi, Ryou, Yami and Yuai were huddled around the coffee table playing gin, as Honda, Anzu, Bakura, Malik and Marik noshed pizza while watching an old tape of Mystery Science Theater.

Yugi scooped up a three and dropped a jack onto the discard pile. "When do you think they'll know."

"I'm sure they'll know soon." Ryou plucked a card from the pick up deck and laid down a six. "In a way, if it is Jonouchi's it might be a good thing."

"I don't see how." Honda glanced over, frowning.

"If it is Jonouchi's it means he might still be alive." Ryou frowned back, then rolled his eyes as Bakura whacked Honda.

"I heard the police mention it looked like it came from someone who was alive." Malik was cuddled into one of the comfy armchair with Marik. "Loosing a finger isn't really all that life threatening."

"Yay. So Jo's in the hands of some weirdo that likes to hack off his fingers." Honda ducked as Bakura half heartedly took another swing at him.

"Might be able to track Jonouchi down using the finger." Marik still watched as Tom Servo attacked Crow with a can giant can opener.

Yami took the six and flipped a nine on the pile. "Possible. We'll have to get it from the police before they test it to pieces."

Yuai took a card from the deck and discarded a king. Yugi smiled brilliantly and snatched the king up. "Do you think that they could reattach it?"

"Been in the mail too long. It's rotted." Bakura stretched lazily on the couch, half watching the program and half watching his hikari play.

Anzu looked green. "Hey. Let's worry about Jo first, then we'll discuss the finger thing later." She looked over to Yami. "Can you find Jo, using magic?"

Bakura snorted. "We've tried. Didn't work."

"We might not have had something that was connected enough to him." Yami fingered his cards thoughtfully.

Marik shrugged and cuddled down into the chair. "Or we could have been doing the spell wrong."

"Or we could have been blocked." Bakura eyed the back of Ryou's neck, wondering if he could take a nibble, then decided against it. Image was everything at times. Damn.

Yami yawned, picked up a card, discarded an eight, "Gin. We won't know until we try again."

Anzu stood up stretching as the cast started yelling and door started opening. "Well, try again." She looked up the stairs. "Should we check on Kaiba or something?"

"The priest is out for the night." Bakura flipped over on his stomach, reaching for a piece of pizza and growled. "Leave him alone."

She patted him on the head as she walked by on her way to the bathroom, "Down boy. Good boy."

Marik and Malik snickered. Honda gave her a admiring look. "She's got guts."

"She's got a death wish." Bakura bit viciously into his pizza.

"Anyone want coffee?" Yuai got to her feet and walked toward the kitchen.

A chorus of me-s answered her. She nodded briefly and disappeared.

Yami, seeing his chance to at least get rid of one problem, stood up and followed her. "I'll help out. Anyone want something stronger?"

Honda, Marik and Bakura waved their hands. Yugi looked up hopefully. Yami pointed at him and shook his head. "No."

"But Yami." Yugi whined, trying to quickly put on his most pitiful kicked puppy look.

Yami hurriedly turned his back and rushed into the kitchen calling back. "No. I don't want to have to haul your giggling, semi-conscious body up those stairs. No."

"Yami." Yugi gave one last pathetic wail, then took a slice of pizza and settled back to watch the show.

Yami walked into the spacious kitchen, noticing that Yuai was already pouring water into the coffee maker and snapping the buttons on. He dug in his pocket and pulled out the necklace. "Yuai." He held the golden item out to her as she turned. "I was sent this to give to you. You need to wear it."

Yuai picked it up, looking at it doubtfully. "I really don't like wearing jewelry." She held it back to him. "You should keep it."

"It's the Millennium Necklace." Yami shook his head stepping back. "It was sent for you."

Yuai instantly dropped it onto a counter and stepped away from it. "Is there a spirit or yami or something in it? I don't need a spirit in my life right now. I have enough strangeness, thanks." Her hand almost went into her pocket to touch the statue that hid there.

"No, nothing like that. It lets the person see the future." Yami turned and took coffee mugs off a mug tree that sat on the counter. "I'm not even sure it will do that for you, since it has already bonded to another."

Yuai looked doubtfully at it. It looked harmless enough. Just a gaudy, gold necklace with a strange eye in it's center. She picked it up. It didn't feel weird either. "Then why send it?"

"I don't know." Yami finished with the cups and started poking around looking for the liquor. "The lady who sent it to me usually only does things for very good reasons. Annoying reasons, but good ones." He found what he was looking for and set a few bottles on the counter. "Last time she interfered, it was to save the world from being taken over by a psychotic, magic wielding maniac who wanted to enslave the human race." Yami felt proud that he managed to avoid the topic of who the psychotic loony was. Yuai might not let him give the loony any whisky if she found out.

Sighing she slipped it around her neck. "Part of me is just having a fit. If someone had said that to me two months ago, I would have thought they'd lost their mind. Now, I'm standing in a kitchen with a five thousand year old pharaoh telling me I have to wear a necklace or the world as we know it may come to an end, while my boss is upstairs, out cold because someone mailed him a finger." She adjusted the necklace so that the eye rested in the hollow of her throat. "This is not a good day."

Yami poured whiskey into four of the mugs, "I agree. This is not a good day."

-00-

"Well finally." The taller man shook his head impatiently. "I thought it would take him forever."

"He had considerable distractions." The older man rested back into his chair. "The important thing is that the task is accomplished."

The tall man shifted back into his own chair and reached for his wine. "The sooner this mess is straightened out the better. One more day listening to those idiots whine at me and I'm obliterating everything."

"Hmmm. If this doesn't work, everything is going to be obliterated anyway." The old man closed his eyes tiredly. "The bindings won't hold much longer."

"True. We might not have time for her to figure things out on her own. The time is drawing near too quickly." The tall one's slender hand traced the designs engraved on his cup. "I might need to go there personally and nudge things along the right track."

"Most likely. Better me then you though." A gentle smile flashed across the old one's face. "You tend to be a bit…abrupt."

"We don't have time to play nice. Just get it done and let it be over." The taller one snapped, then took a gulp of wine.

"True, but a touch of kindness might hurry things along were impatience would only halt them." The old man got to his feet. "I'll make arrangements while you keep watch."

The tall man nodded and shifted forward, "Very well, just get it done quickly. You know she has to die in two weeks and I would that it be by our hand and not fates."

* * *

Feed the muses with your reviews or they starve and whimper. It's sad when muses whimper.

Yes, this is dark, and yep, it's going to get darker. I promise to all those anxious people out there, somehow, someway things will get better. I love a good, happy ending just as much as the next. Just don't make any predictions about how, what, where, why or when it will happen. This rides just picking up speed now so hold on and trust me. You'll love what I have in store.

**Hikari Raine: **Well, I guess this answers both of your questions - and there will be more torture on the way. The evil baddie isn't done tormenting Kaiba yet!

**Clarity: **The plot, in more ways than one, has been underway since the begining of _Chrysalis_. It's just picking up speed now and Kaiba is just slated for more suffering. Poor boy...

**xMinkx:** I left your response over on MM. Good thinking! Most don't remember that I post this in two places :)


	4. Dreams

Disclaimer: Yugi-oh is the property of Kazuki Takahashi, who is a genius.

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

**Psyche**

Chapter Four: Dreams

* * *

-000-

Kaiba

-00-

The sun woke him the next day as it slanted through the blinds, one finger of it poking at his eyes. He groggily shifted position and buried his head into the pillows. He reached down and tried to tug the blanket up farther around his shoulders, but something was holding it down. His arm joints ached in a dull distant throb at the movement.

_"Ain't you going to get up?" _

Kaiba moaned and shook his head, refusing to look at the ghost. His body felt dead, clumsy. It would take too much energy to move and escape. He only hoped the latest bout with his conscience would be over soon.

_"Mind if I join you then?"_

A feather soft touch trailed along his side, causing him to jerk convulsively away from it. He rolled back over and stared at his personal ghost, who was perched on the edge of the bed, smiling happily at him. His…it's soft gold hair softly rumpled, as if it'd just woken up. It's tawny eyes laughing at him.

"You aren't here." Kaiba rolled farther away, putting distance between him…it and himself. He felt as if his limbs were three times their normal weight, reacting in clumsy slow motion to is frantic demand for movement.

_"I'm not?" Jo…it looked questioningly at Kaiba, then looked around the room. "Then, if I'm not here, where am I?"_

Kaiba managed to finally reach the other side of the bed tumbled into an uncoordinated heap onto the floor. His head felt thick, heavy. His mind blanketed in a suffocating cocoon. He shook his head trying to clear it, but the world tilted dizzily at the action. "I don't know."

_Jo…it –_damn it, it is an it!-_ sighed and lifted one hand to rake its hair back from his face. _

Kaiba shivered a bit as he noticed that it was now missing one finger and a trail of blood wound down it's arm in delicate red threads. He staggered to his feet, wrenching his eyes away, looking at the carpet beneath his feet. He forced his leaden feet to take him to the door.

_"Kaiba, I'm right here" It's voice wrapped around him almost physically dragging him to the floor. "You can't pretend I'm not."_

Soft footfalls approached him. He grabbed wildly at the door knob, fumbling, trying to open it as the feet stopped just behind him. "You aren't here. You aren't here." He tugged at the door feeling as if he was being torn into pieces. His arms and legs ached with fatigue; his eyes desperately wanted to turn and face the one that stood behind him, just to be able to see that face; his mind was shrieking in panic, racing around in blurred, confused circles, as a light touch brushed across his shoulder.

_"It's your fault you know." The voice was gentle, sad. "Sure, I got a few people ticked at me, but no one that wanted to rip off my fingers and mail them to anyone."_

Kaiba shivered, pressing his forehead against the door, closing his eyes. "I know. Please Jo, I know."

_"Please?" The voice sounded irritated. "I get my fingers chopped off and all you can say is please? THAT DOESN'T FUCKING MEAN SHIT!" The voice raised to a all encompassing roar that seemed to shake the house. "YOU ARE KILLING ME! YOUR FAULT! MURDERER!"_

Kaiba slid to the floor, his head throbbing in pain, curling into a protective ball, shielding his ears. He hated when the ghost got angry. There was no place to hide. No place that his heart didn't hear the words that were thrown at it like daggers. He could only listen, feeling the pain, the loss, the anger. He deserved them. Didn't he?

_"I loved you." The voice was soft again. "Did you know that?"_

"Yes. I'm sorry."

_"Sorry can't fix this. You just can't kill people and say, oops sorry." Fingers brushed through his hair. Something warm dripped onto his face and slowly trailed downward._

"I know."

_"It's your fault, koi."_

He wiped the warm trail away and looked at the blood smearing his fingers. "My fault."

-00-

Jame

-000-

"…only if the first party was willing, and knowledgeable of the intentions of the second party, would the first party, that would be me…" The voice droned meaninglessly on, and on.

Jame leaned back in her chair, with a small smiled plastered to her face. It had taken the man fifteen minutes to answer the question. Jame was impressed, usually when asked "Would you like some coffee?" It took less then five seconds to give a adequate response. The only problem was where to put him.

She had no doubt that Kado would cheerfully murder her if she hired him in the position of Security Liaison. Tanaka and the rest of the staff would have a lynching party if she put the man in the personnel position, but where** to** put him? She had already filled the other vacancies.

"…the party of the second part, being under no obligation to the party of the first part, would then…"

Could she create a new position just for this man? Assistant in charge of… legalese? Contracts? Extraneous paperwork? Tediousness? She could picture the uses this man would have. When unwanted and unscheduled executives came to talk to a overstressed, nearly-dead-on-his-feet Kaiba, and mess up her carefully crafted schedule, they could just sic this man on them. He could stall people for hours, not committing to anything or giving away any form of information, freeing Kaiba to deal with more important matters, like contract negotiations with Ms. Shrill. She grinned. _How sweet it is._

"…if both parties agreed to this arrangement, with full understanding of all the ramifications of their own actions…"

Jame purred to herself and, with the man's voice continuing its dull droning in the background, drifted off into a land where she was happily fired by a disgruntled, irritable Kaiba and was now free to bound lightly along sandy beaches, with delicate sea winds caressing her scantily clad body. Cabo San Lucus? She always enjoyed the water sports there. A bit touristy, true, but lots of fun.

"…whereupon, the party of the second part would then provide, keeping within the boundaries of the obligations put forth by the part of the first part, to…"

-00-

Yami

-00-

Egypt again. This time he was sitting in his throne room. He had forgotten how beautiful it had been, with it's painted carvings of the gods, the glitter of gold and jewels, the rich scent of perfume wafting through the sultry currents of air that meandered around the assembly. However, the wonders of it paled fast when one was forced to sit and look at it for hours as some pointless court function dragged on at the foot of his throne.

Yami lolled bored on his grand seat, swirling his wine around in it's gold chalice and wondering why he didn't just banish the whole lot of them to the Shadow Realm and go swim in the Nile. The day was sweltering, both extremely hot and, thanks to the nearby Nile, extremely humid. Even under the massive stone walls of the palace, all he could think of was to go throw himself in cool water or lay flat on the floor and melt. He tossed down the rest of his wine with a grimace and set the cup at his elbow.

Shimon, as always was lurking at his elbow, ready to pounce with a well timed piece of stale wisdom, picked it up and signaled for the attendant. "More wine my pharaoh?"

Yami shuddered, the last wine had tasted like a science project gone terribly wrong. He wondered if Seth, calmly sitting sipping wine over in the shadows, had found a different kind of wine, or if his taste buds had corroded off. He shook his head. "No. Not now."

Somehow, the heat wasn't affecting the group of diplomats that crowded around his throne, chittering like a pack of well dressed mice. They cooed smooth insults at each other, preening and strutting, waving their little fans in front of faces that gleamed with sweat. Their attendants drifted through them offering cool damp cloths, ale and wine mixed with fruit. Occasionally, one diplomat or another would turn to him with a false smile and offer a bit of flattery.

He could, if he searched long enough spot his priests amongst them. Isis was chatting to a large man portly man with a shaved head that looked vaguely like scary cross between Orson Wells and a sumo wrestler. Shada was surrounded by a cluster of sighing women, who playfully fanned themselves and batted long, kholed eyelashes at him as he looked desperately around for a rescue. His uncle, Akhenaden, was standing in a cluster of senior diplomats, smiling a bored, weary smile. Mahado was desperately trying to separate himself from a overly plush woman that had latched onto his arm with the tenacity of a starving leech. Seth still lounging in a shadowy recess, lifting a mocking goblet of wine in salute as he noticed Yami's eyes pass over him. Karim leaned close to a young man, smiling mischievously while signaling a nearby attendant to bring more wine.

A silk and jewel swathed man, mopping his head with a piece of silk, turned from a conversation he was having with another diplomat, smiled and bowed ingratiatingly in his direction.

_Just go back to ignoring me already, would you?_ Yami snarked to himself and, plastering a equally false smile on his face, waved noncommittally to the pompous idiot and returned to his bored slouch, wondering if he could slip over and see what Seth was sipping with such relish in the corner and what he'd have to do to get it.

A guard, that looked like he would gladly drop dead, if someone would just kick a bit of dirt over him, dragged his sweating, ceremonially overdressed self into the room, "Your majesty, your queen has returned. She asks if..."

As had happened in every dream, that whispered through his mind when he closed his eyes, a tiny figure scampered around the guard and raced on small chubby legs toward him. A wide happy smile of unshakable love and happiness glowing on the little round face that look only at him. Tiny fingers stretched toward him as if each little digit wanted to be the first to touch him and wrap him in a hug.

"Papa home!"

Yami got up and descended down the steps, scooping the flying tot up and swinging him up into his arms. "Yes, Papa home."

The toddler's ruby eyes crinkled into laugher, as he stroked the hair from the child's face and kissed the sweaty little forehead. Such soft hair, like finest silk threads brushing across his fingers. It was thick and black, with a single, startling lock of gold, that fell in a soft streak down the side of the little boy's face.

His son's face.

He was holding his son.

-00-

Jame

-000-

_The blond bunny, isn't that what he called his last secretary?_ Jame watched as the latest applicant grinned idiotically across the desk from her. The woman really wasn't an idiot, but she did a terrific impression. The large blue eyes didn't seem to hold even a trace of brain power. The expensive, though amazingly tight business suit, did more to show off her ample cleavage and tiny waist then project a business image. The soft golden hair that tumbled in a soft cascade down around her slender shoulders nearly yelled dumb blond. The impressive résumé of top notch clientele and the sharp mind, seemed belied by the soft, breathy voice and the little girl pout. However, it was her laugh that was winning her the coveted position of assistant. The laugh could make people brains want to melt out their ears at twenty paces. The laugh that sounded like some mutated donkey/hyena on helium.

"Oh, thank you so much." Immense blue eyes teared up. "I have been looking for work for months." The soft, pouty lips quivered dramatically. "I just don't know why I couldn't find any work."

_I have a clue_. Jame thought, then slapped herself for the catty comment. "I guess you were meant to work for us, Miss Usagi. I'm sure you are just who we need for this position."

"I love working with people." She breathed, oozing sex appeal.

Jame had to hurriedly evacuate her mind from all dirty thoughts that the innocent, in anyone else's mouth, comment caused to run wildly through her head.

"You'll do great. Mr. Kaiba will be thrilled to work with you." Jame stood and shooed her out of her office. "Mr. Tanaka will be contacting you in a few days. He's the head of personnel for the main office."

A smile of vapid pleasure flitted over the blonde's face. "Mr. Tanaka, he sounds nice. I'll look forward to meeting with him."

More thoughts, this time featuring Mr. Tanaka's middle aged, somewhat scandalized face floated through her head as she watched the new blond bunny wiggle seductively down the hall. "I wonder if I should start packing now?"

-00-

Yugi

-000-

The Millennium Necklace hit with a thunk in the center of the table. "How about I bet this?"

Bakura, holding a full house, nearly yelled his thanks to the gods. This was undoubtedly the best poker game he'd ever been in. Ryou, dancing around the Kaiba's living room trying to keep busy by doing aerobics with Anzu, was nearly flattened by the wave of sheer euphoria from his darker half.

"No betting Millennium Items." Yugi mumbled absently around a mouthful of popcorn.

"Why not!" Bakura and Yuai said at the same time, with matching miffed looks on their faces.

Yugi, sucking the end of his thumb distractedly, while looking at his cards, shook his head. "Chaos, havoc, end of the world kind of stuff. Two cards." He set his discarded cards down on the table.

"Stupid rule." Bakura eyed the golden necklace greedily.

"I agree. It's mine, I should be able to bet it if I want." Yuai glared at the thing.

"That's right, it's hers. She should bet it if she wants." Bakura nodded to Yuai showing his firm support of her decision.

Malik, passing with another tub of popcorn to join his yami's continuing MST blitz, shook his head. "No. Yugi's right. No destroying the world over poker games."

"It'll hardly destroy the world." Yuai refused to pick the thing up. "All it does is catch your hair in it's clasp and smack you in the face if you lean over too quickly." _And give you screaming nightmares about being crushed into a wall by a speeding car. Gotta love those!_

Yami ambling by with a computer print out of the day's stock market report, reached over, picked up the necklace and dropped it back in Yuai's lap. "You're supposed to keep it."

Bakura snarled and grumpily returned to his cards. Yuai snarled at the golden thing and grumpily returned to her cards. Yugi picked up two cards and sighed.

Mokuba set three of his cards down and looked up the stairs. "Should we check on big brother?"

Honda trying to wrestle the DVD out of it's case nodded. "It's been… what nearly a day. That medicine's got to have worn off by now."

"He has been overworking himself for weeks now. The rest is probably good for him." Yuai sulkily nudged one card across the table.

"I'll go look in on him." Yami pulled a pencil out from behind his ear and jotted something down on the papers, while ambling towards the stairs.

Yuai watched him walk away, wondering if she could slip the necklace to Bakura under the table. She really didn't want to repeat that dream again. Last night she had dreamed the same stupid dream four times.

It started the same way every time. She was walking down the road reading a shopping list. She couldn't remember what had been on the list, but she'd been checking them off as she walked. A small cluster of plastic shopping bags had been hanging from her wrist, cutting the circulation off to her fingers with their thin plastic straps that masqueraded as handles. She even could feel a light coating of sweat stick to the back of her neck.

As she walked, people whisked by her, darting here and there as they went about their errands. It had been like a hundred other days. Nothing strange, nothing new. Just the same old, same old.

Then it would happen, the sound of brakes shrieking. Her head turning to look over at the street as people gasped and scattered, but she couldn't. She alone of the crowd was frozen on the sidewalk as a large green car with a gleaming chrome grill swerved to avoid another car, ran up over the curb and slammed her back into the wall. It all would happen so quickly, so very quickly.

The sick sensation of looking down at herself and seeing nothing below her chest but the crumpled fender. The absence of feeling in her legs. The bright splash of blood that forced it's thickness out of her mouth as she tried to scream, to beg, to cry. The sudden blaze of pain that sprang out from her broken body as she desperately tried to lift her hands, only to find that they too were pinned to the wall. After, the even more terrifying swoop of darkness, that left her all alone with nothing but the pain for company, knowing that all there was left for her was that pain. That she'd never be able to escape it.

It had been early morning, before the sun had even begun it's rise, that she had wrenched herself out of her unwanted dreams and hurtled the necklace across the room. Four times had been enough, more than enough, and if in the early morning Yami's words crept back to her head and cuddled down with her like a hissing cobra, then she'd just make sure she didn't go shopping like that anymore.

"It lets the person see the future."

-000-

Jonouchi

-000-

"Breakfast!" Mokuba's voice rang cheerfully down the hall.

Jonouchi quickly spat his mouthful of toothpaste into the sink and dashed for the door. The kid was already hopping down the stairs, passing Kaiba, who was trying to tie his tie and read the paper at the same time. Yuai was flitting down below, gathering her books into her book bag.

"Morning." He pecked a quick kiss on Kaiba's cheek and bolted down the stairs, following the smell of pancakes and bacon into the dinning room. Mokuba was already sitting in front of a huge stack of soft fluffy cakes and pouring syrup on them.

"Hey, leave some for me!" Jo sat down and almost instantly a plate of identical pancakes was placed in front of him by the cook.

Mokuba laughed, "There's plenty. The cook made extra today because it's a holiday." The kid took a huge forkful and crammed it into his mouth, making his cheeks puff out like a squirrels.

"Today's a holiday?" Jo slathered butter on his cakes. "Didn't know that."

"All Souls Day." Kaiba walked in and sat down. He was dressed all in black, black suit, black tie, even his silk shirt was a dusky black.

"No school? Cool." Jo poured syrup on his breakfast, watching the sweet, thick liquid coat down the sides of his stack and pool onto the plate.

"No, no school." Kaiba sounded sad.

Jo looked up. Kaiba was looking off into space. His blue eyes watching the shadows that seemed to loom up around the room. As he watched, the shadows slid around Kaiba's chair. "Ah, maybe you should move." Jo watched the shadows send little tendrils of darkness out, catching at Kaiba's pant legs.

"No point." Kaiba sighed tiredly, his black clothing shifting across his body like a living being. "It's All Souls Day, Jo. No point trying to get away from them.

"

Mokuba, gulping down another mouthful, nodded. "Yeah, but you better eat up. The cook's not going to be here for the rest of the day."

Jo, still mesmerized by the shifting shadows, nodded. "Why don't I have any shadows then? Don't I get shadows?"

"No, you don't have any shadows." Kaiba picked up his cup of coffee and sipped it as the shadows creaped up his legs. "You only have shadows if you killed someone."

"Oh, Gozaburo." Jo watched as a shadow slid down Kaiba's arm, twining itself around his wrist.

"No, love." Kaiba looked up at him. "You."

A blow to his side and searing pain drove him back into the real world. The man standing above him smiled almost pleasantly as he unsnapped the button of his worn dirty jeans. "Time to earn your keep, whore."

* * *

**Review and let your voice be heard!**

**Clarity:** Mokuba agrees with you, but that's all I'm going to say. Yep, this is suspensefull and it's only going to get worse. I try to plot my stories out before they ever hit the internet, so I can easily say, you're going to be in for a confusing, surprising ride. I hope you enjoy it!

**Hikari Raine:** Mokuba agrees with you too. Kaiba wouldn't scream like a woman, unless... If it helps, I like Jonouchi in posession of all his fingers and toes too, it won't help him, but I do like it.


	5. Meetings

Disclaimer: Yugi-oh is the property of Kazuki Takahashi, who is a genius.

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

**Psyche**

Chapter Five: Meetings

* * *

**Bakura**

He didn't have many happy memories of this place. He hadn't been at his brilliant best, last time. Oh, he'd done what had needed to be done, but, when he was alone in his soul room, he reluctantly admitted that he could have been a bit … less… talkative. He even blushed in embarrassment, back in the farthest, loneliest, most remote corner of his room, at some of the inept things he'd babbled. His defense was that he'd been a bit… tired, yes, tired, therefore any less than… inspired things he had done or said, had been the fault of little sleep, little food –_Damn boats. Man was not supposed to float around like that on all that damn waving, lurching, unruly water. Give me a nice smooth river that did nice smooth predictable things, where one could stand on the bank and never be tossed about like a fucking child's ball_.- and a queasy stomach.

Duelist Kingdom island had not changed much. The wharf looked the same, with it's grey weathered wood and overblown arches proclaiming their welcome to any seagull that passed this way. Many of the dueling arenas were still in place, though looking a bit neglected. Pegasus' castle had a few more moats, but looked otherwise the same too. Croquette looked as staunchly dull as ever, as he opened the door, then surprisingly –_well maybe not_- slammed it in his face.

"Hey! I'm trying to be nice here!" Bakura griped at the door. "I could have broken in you know!" Inspired…maybe it was being this close to a total fruitcake that was muddling his brain. With a long suffering look, he stepped back and planned his next attempt, while silently cursing his stupid hikari. "Go talk to Pegasus, he says. Be nice, he says. Just knock on the front door, he says, and tell then you just want to talk." Bakura snarled and eyed the electronic security scanners. "Bite me, I say." Then shrugged. "No point in being subtle."

The door was not problem, he was even "nice" and didn't completely obliterate the thing. Completely. The phalanx of security guards, he actually felt a bit sorry for. Pegasus, with his knowledge of shadow magic should have known better then to hire such complete incompetents. Croquette was barely a thought, as he brushed the stooge lightly aside. It was locating Pegasus that took the effort. The nutcase wasn't in the study, any of the bedrooms, the kitchen, the dinning room, the family room, the parlor, the armory –_Gotta come back to that later.- _the tiny chapel, the underground dueling arena, the TV room, the library, the butler's pantry, the greenhouse, the … -_how many fucking rooms does this wacko have_!-

Bakura, taking a breather in the kitchen, pulled open the refrigerator and pulled out a beer. Slumping against a counter, he contemplated his next move. _Okay, so the wacko isn't in the castle, then where is he? _Bakura twisted the cap off his beer and stared out the window. He shrugged and considered going back and torturing the info out of Croquette, or hunting aimlessly through Duelist Kingdom. "That's a no brainer." He chugged his beer as he went searching for where he tossed the bodyguard.

"Croquette! I'm home!" A merry voice caroled through the foyer, brining a feral smile to Bakura's lips as he gave a yeasty belch.

Pegasus was standing lightly to one side of the entry, dropping a hat on the table. His white hair was slightly mussed from the light breeze. His pale hands absently smoothing a pair of gloves as he placed them next to the hat.

Bakura slid up silently behind him. "Hello again."

Pegasus turned, with a mildly curious look that disappeared quickly. "NO! NO. Keep it away from me! Keep it away!"

"Keep what away?" Bakura was mildly curious, as the man plastered himself against the wall and tried to scoot along it keeping as much distance between himself and the thief as possible.

"Don't bring it near me!" Pegasus looked wildly around, still trying to slide along the wall to the door.

"The Eye?" Bakura stepped forward, somehow not entirely pleased as the other man cringed. "Don't you want it back?"

"NO! I don't want it back. I don't want it back." He shook his head wildly. "I won't play another game. I won't. You took it, you have to keep it. You can't make me take it back."

Bakura frowned, as far as he could tell, most people who have Millennium Items wanted to keep them desperately. He'd fought a war for them. The pharaoh protected the Puzzle with every power he had, even risking his own soul. Marik, crazed as he was, would leave a large bloody streak through the population if he ever felt the Rod was jeopardized. He wouldn't think twice of sacrificing himself to protect the ring. To have hysterics because someone might return a Millennium Item? That was beyond bizarre, heading straight to lunatic and zeroing in on unbelievable. –_Well there is Moto's little girlfriend. She hates hers with a passion, but then it really isn't hers is it?-_

"You don't want it?" Bakura took another step forward.

Pegasus bolted, running through the door, yelling for Croquette. Bakura followed after him, sipping the last of his beer. For some reason, he felt he came to the right place. If anyone knew anything about that Eye, the terrified man that was racing, stumbling up the main staircase knew.

**Yuai**

The Millennium Necklace now lived in the kitchen, under the sink, beneath the box of Decon, in the unused studio apartment over the garage, at the far back of the Kaiba estate. The garage that only the gardeners used to store their equipment. The only time that the golden nightmare saw the light of day was when Yuai knew that Yugi or Yami were going to come over and notice it's absence from her throat, body, immediate presence, room, or even vicinity. Then and only then, would she trek out to the back of the beyond of the estate and dig the thing out of the shoebox it now called home and shove it in her pocket next to her statue of the black magician.

In the nearly eight days that it had been in her possession, she had suffered from a variety of amusing nighttime entertainments. After delighting her with the joy of getting the life smashed out of her from a car accident, the necklace had expanded it hymn of happiness to show her lovely dreams of getting impaled on spears, burning at the stake, freezing in a snowstorm, getting literally fucked to death by solders, and dying in a Nazi concentration camp. She now woke up every morning plotting how to repay Yami for the lovely gift he had given her. A pit of fire ants, hungry, irritable, fire ants were this morning's choice.

She hunched her shoulders and glowered at the beautiful day that surrounded her. Domino City park was all decked out in its spring glory of blooming flowers, soft lush green grass and merry, jewel like birds that flittered joyously around singing their small hearts out. Small children scampered like puppies through the spring breezes, followed by proud, indulgent parents. A few small groups of teens hung around the fountain and lake, lolling gleefully at the picnic tables and drinking from bright colored soda cans as they laughed with their friends. Life, for the non-Millennium Necklace cursed crowd, was sweet. Yuai felt like a small speck of dark gloom, perched on a bench, watching the bacchanalia of spring like a disapproving old auntie.

"Maybe if you snarl a bit, it might help."

Startled, Yuai looked up into a smiling familiar face. He was an old man, with a long neatly clipped white beard. "Thanks…uh…Mr…"

He sat down next to her with a tired sigh. "Kallon, my dear. Remember the convention? You bought those little figurines."

"Oh. Yes, I remember." Yuai nodded, fingering the small statue in her pocket. She pulled it out. "Thanks for the statue. I figure you had to have…"

"You're quite welcome." He gave an amused snort. "He misses you, you know. Not that he'd ever admit such sentimental garbage, but he does miss you."

"Excuse me?" Yuai looked around quickly, trying to keep up with the turn in the conversation. No one was around that looked like they missed her. Though there was one little hell-beast masquerading as a innocent child that was taking aim at her head with a squirt gun that had better miss her. She tried out the snarl Mr. Kallon had suggested. It worked fine.

"Never mind." He looked out over the park. "I take it you haven't been pleased with the necklace."

"The necklace?" Yuai blanked, what necklace did she get at the convention. Was there another entertaining piece of jewelry lurking around to make her life complete?

"The Millennium Necklace." He looked over at her with arched eyebrows and humorous eyes.

"The necklace from hell? What do you have to do with that?" Visions of fire ants danced in her head.

"I'm afraid I was one of the ones to…encourage it to be sent to you." He looked amused as she glared death at him.

"Really. Who are the others?" Yuai ticked off things she would need. Happily she could find most of them in the gardener's garage. She could grab them on her way through it tonight. She was going to one of the dueling arenas with Yugi tonight and she'd have to fetch the necklace. _Multi-tasking, always a good thing._

"Making a list and checking it twice." The laughter was working closer to the surface of his eyes.

"Fire ants are cheap."

He started laughing, "I have missed you, too, dearest one. I have truly missed you." He suddenly sobered. "Enough. The necklace was sent for a reason. A very good reason."

Yuai looked at him doubtfully. "I can't honestly say I've missed you. Who are you again?"

"Kallon." He gave her a troubled frown. "Now, listen. You don't have much time."

Yuai shifted away from him, looking suspiciously at him. "What do you mean. You send me a necklace that gives me nightmares…"

"Not nightmares, dearest, memories." He caught her hand and held it. "You are reliving your own deaths." He cocked his head questioningly to one side. "Don't tell me you've adopted the modern day disbelief of the soul."

"Look," she tugged at her hand. "This is all very nice, but I…"

"Am going to get crushed by a car in a few days?" He nodded, keeping her hand trapped. "And when it happens, you will be born again, and again, living the same nightmare life and dying a painful death. You need to stop it."

"I don't…"

"Believe me? How many deaths have you relived? Burned by the Inquisition? Slowly suffocated by a fallen tree? Ritually sacrificed? Poisoned? Gasses in a concentration camp? How about the lives you lived before those deaths? Roman slave? Orphaned kitchen wench? Penniless leper? How about this one as fuck toy for deranged parents? Kicked, raped, abused, whipped, tortured? Aren't you tired of it yet?" He dropped her hand and looked away. "You need to stop it and come home."

"I am home." Yuai stood up, turning away. "Leave me alone."

"No dearest, you aren't home, and soon you and that car will meet. If you try to avoid the car, then something else will happen. You always die on the same day, at the same time, at the same age. And unless you do something soon, you will only be reborn moments later to live the same life you just escaped from. Is that what you want?"

"When?" She froze, remembering the car's grill racing toward her.

"Soon, dearest, unless you cheat death."

She turned around, "You can't cheat death."

Kallon nodded solemnly, "It is possible. You just have to know how."

**Kaiba**

"Concentrate Kaiba, you need to focus your mind." Yami's voice was low, slipping silkily around him. "If you can't focus, you won't be able to tell what thoughts are yours and what are not. Focus."

They were sitting cross legged on the floor of his home office. The window shades drawn, blocking out the glare of the over bright sun. The door to the hall was left cracked open, so that he could hear if Mokuba needed him, but so far the mansion's usual hush pervaded, not even the soft sounds of the maids doing their afternoon cleaning could be heard in the shady room.

"Can I wash my hands first?" Kaiba squirmed. He was doing the one thing he had sworn he would never, in this life or any other, do, concede to Yam that magic was real. But if there was anyway, anyway in hell, he could find the person who had Jo by backtracking the shadow spell that was choking the sanity out of him, he'd do it. He'd live with Yami's smirking, Bakura's gloating, even Marik's crazed grins, if he could only get Jo back. He could more than live with it. He'd revel in it. He'd celebrate every second. Have anniversaries. Teach his kids all about the wonders of the Shadow Realm. Just as long as Jo was there sniping little told-you-so-s at him.

"No, Kaiba, you've washed your hands enough. They're clean." Yami soothed.

They didn't feel clean. Kaiba could still feel a sticky residue on them, like half dried blood. If he looked down at them, he would see a ghostly impression of a reddish brown smear on his finger tips from where he had touched the ghost's blood. Still, if it was part of the spell, it was good that it was there, very good. They might be able to trace it, like a phone call being traced on those cheesy cop show reruns Jonouchi loved to watch late at night.

"Focus."

_"Hey Kaiba! Where's the remote?" _

_The ghost yelled from downstairs. A pause then feet distantly thumping up the staircase._

_"Kaiba! You hogging the remote again?"_

"Focus. Look at your thoughts." Yami's hands smoothed through his hair, coming to rest on his shoulders.

"He's coming." Kaiba opened his eyes, only to have Yami cover them again, smoothing the lids down with the palm of his hand.

"No he isn't. There is nothing there. Focus." Yami's voice dropped lower, becoming a mere whisper.

"_Kaiba, whatcha doin' up here with him? You cheating on me?"_

"No, I would never…" Kaiba shifted against Yami's hands.

"Focus. It isn't there." Hands came up to stroke his temples.

"Jo…"

"Isn't there. This spell only works if you give it permission for it to work. It's using your need to see Jo against you. Now focus, or we won't find the real Jo." Yami's voice was barely above a breath.

_"Hey! Don't listen to him. I'm right here!" Ghost hands yanked at his sleeve, demanding attention._

"That's it. Focus. The image is the scent, we just need to track it to the real Jonouchi."

Jo, for Jo he'd do this. He pushed the feeling of the hands away, narrowing it out of his mind, just like he did when working on a programming. He could imagine it. The smooth sequence of numbers. The orderly dance of pixels across the screen.

The hands disappeared. He almost wanted to cry out, to bring them back. They were the only thing he had left.

No! He wouldn't think like that. He'd track the bastard down. He'd get Jo back. He'd have more than some sick ghost hanging around dripping blood and madness through his house. He'd have Jo, the real one, once again roaming through his house, yelling about the lack of Rocky, Rocky Road ice cream and sleeping in a warm cuddle in his arms at night.

"Good, very good." Yami's hands slipped away. "Focus, find the scent, so we can follow."

**Bakura**

Pegasus sipped his wine, nodding at Bakura. "Yes, that's the entire secret. Rather twisted, isn't it."

"I really never even thought of that. It just seems… wrong. Deeply wrong." The spirit ran his fingers through his white hair shaking his head, bewildered at the new revelation.

"Yes, but I've been watching this happen for a long time, you can trust that I know what I'm talking about." Pegasus set his now empty glass down and motioned for Croquette to fill it again.

"But this?" Bakura nodded as Croquette arched a questioning eyebrow at his beer bottle.

"Surprising?"

"Unexpected." Bakura flipped the copy of The Daily Soap Almanac down on the table. "How could you possibly have figured out that Jessica was carrying her long lost brother Teddy's child, when they haven't even seen each other since they were three?"

"You'll see. The child was the result of artificial insemination because Roman is infertile…"

"No! He has three kids with Raven!"

"Raven's a slut. The kids are from her affair with Jack." Pegasus shook his head sadly. "Roman's been infertile since Mona poisoned him because he dumped her for Rebecca."

"Then how could Teddy be the child's father?" Bakura nodded absently at Croquette as another beer appeared in front of him.

"Pauline is really Teddy, but since Teddy is now working for a secret government agency, he's working under cover as a transvestite weightlifter." Pegasus lifted his new glass of wine and took a sip. "Just wait, in a week or two when Jessica has the baby it'll have two heads or something."

Smirking, Bakura leaned back in his seat. "Yes. Inbreeding has some unusual effects. Who knows? The kid might end up with red eyes, odd hair, or even be severely stunted."

"You never know."

* * *

**Review!**

Here's a question, and I'll give a prize to the winner. Probably a guest shot in my fic. I have been trying, unsuccessfully to write a good summary for Chrysalis and for Emergence. How would you do it?

**Hikari Raine:** Yes, I admitt the finger was nasty, but it (plot wise) did what it was supposed to do. Kaiba, happily, has friends, so maybe, maybe with a bit of help he'll be beter soon...Maybe.

**clarity:** It's funny what the human mind will do. I once did a term paper on curses and vodoo and the person has to, at some level give the spell permision to work, otherwise they'll shed the spell, so I would say, with Kaiba, it's a mix of guilt and magic. As with Emergence, you will probably be very confused, untill it's over and all is revealed. This plot is long (20 chapters) and as usual, complex. All should be clear at the end, and if it isn't, LET ME KNOW! I want this to be fun to read, not pointlessly fustrating... Mind you I said pointless... >:)


	6. Aquisitions

Disclaimer: _Yugi-oh_ is the property of Kazuki Takahashi, who is a genius. I think I own _Captive Passions_. I don't really think it exists, but the name is cheesy enough to have already been used someplace somehow…. Well, the version that appears in my story is all mine. Nobody else would want it.

Authoress also wants to say. Yes, I used to be one of the dim witted geeks. If you can't poke fun at yourself, why write?

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

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**Psyche**

Chapter Six: Acquisitions

**Bakura**

"You sure you want this?" Bakura weighed the parcel in his hand thoughtfully, wondering idly what the pharaoh would do to him and if there was any possible way to get Marik to suffer too. He still had a few issues from April first that he wanted to discuss… yes, discuss… with the other spirit.

"Yes, I am sure." Yuai counted out a wad of bills. "We agreed on seven hundred fifty, right?"

Bakura shrugged and handed over the parcel and took the money. It wasn't like she could do anything with it anyway. He was more curious about how she even knew of its existence, it wasn't exactly a topic they covered in school, but he needed the cash and she didn't seem to want to discuss her new found obsession with oddities. "What are you going to do with it anyways?"

Yuai tucked the parcel into her backpack with a noncommittal shrug. "Thanks Bakura." She hefted he large pack over her slender shoulder and turned away. "If Yugi or Yami asks, tell them it was my idea."

"Asks what?" Bakura pocketed the money, still eyeing the small girl and suddenly wondering if he should take the thing away from her. _I'll get it back tonight. I haven't explored all the possibilities of breaking and entering on the Kaiba estate. Two birds one stone._

She tipped her head in a small shrug. "See ya around." She suddenly turned and looked at him with a wide, almost frightened, look on her face. "You really are a nice guy Bakura. Thanks. For everything. If I can ever…" She looked away. "I got to go. Bye." She nearly ran out of the park and disappeared down the street.

_That girl is really odd._ Bakura turned and walked down the path that would lead him back to his hikari, fingering the money in his pocket. With the cash that Yugi's little girlfriend had just provided, he could search for the missing Eye without niggling little details of financing and who to mug for cash. People were surprisingly tight with cash. In the old days all he had to do was find some richly dressed ass and he'd be financed for a year. Today, with it's cubic zirconium synthetic monstrosities, it was difficult to spot a good payday. Unless he wanted to mug Kaiba, who, thanks to Yami's interference was now showing signs of becoming as adept at magic today as he had been back then, was getting to be too risky to roll.

His hikari was were he left him, merrily feeding bread to overweight ducks and giggling at their antics. Bakura eyed him carefully from a distance, wondering at him. _He is me. As I always was, but hidden. I didn't even realize…_ Ryou waved as he spotted him. Bakura snorted and ambled over to him. _My soul didn't die with my parents, it just went to sleep till it was safe. Smart soul. Very smart, little hikari._

"Bakura look, they have ducklings!" Ryou was glowing with happiness as he pointed to a group of little brown fuzz balls that floated in a small armada behind a rather frazzled looking duck.

"Are they edible?"

And that was how he learned that a bag of day old bread could indeed be used as an effective weapon.

**Kaiba**

Yami stood next to him looking uncertainly at the school building. "Somehow Kaiba, I just don't see it."

"Look, I'm new at this, give me a break." Kaiba turned away and stomped down the street, back towards his house, too irritated to even wave to his driver to follow.

Yami took one last look at the building and followed. "If it helps, you are getting better. This time it led you to a place that Jonouchi spent a great deal of time in, which is better then standing in at that dueling arena where Jo had to dress up as a dog. Which was much better then the lovely revisit to the VR pods. I didn't particularly care for that little reminder of getting my mind sucked into a VR Shadow Game."

"Shut up." Kaiba growled at the smirking pharaoh.

"You really don't change do you?" Yami grinned happily. Since he'd started teaching Kaiba Shadow Magic, the brunette had started acting a bit more like… well himself…Seth. Yami, stuck in a foreign world with only the tomb robber for company, was nothing short of ecstatic with the thought he might actually have his old friend back.

Kaiba grouched along, fisting his hands in his pockets. He'd been so sure. The magic arrowing him in the direction of the school with such desperate precision. The magic however seemed more interested in showing him places that Jo had been in, then in revealing where Jo was now. Without doing the tracing spell, he could already tell the next place the magic would point him would be the site of an abandoned warehouse, that had been mysteriously bought by a industrial company and demolished. He was rather proud of that. "Any other brilliant ideas?"

"None that you'll like." Yami tipped his head thinking carefully. The spell could have been blocked. A difficult thing to do, but then so was mind altering spells and visions. Whoever had Jonouchi could easily have done both, but how to get around the block was the trick. Unhappily, the one who best knew how to do that had been Seth and Seth, or rather Seto, was still relearning what had at one time been as natural to him as breathing.

"And I'm liking wandering around Domino City chasing down stray leads like an overworked cop. Why don't we stop for donuts and make my day complete." Kaiba snarled wondering vaguely if there was a donut shop nearby. He'd skipped breakfast in his rush to find out where the magic would point him today and while the thought of donuts made his stomach turn into a mass of shrieking knots, he could use a cup of industrial strength coffee. "What are my options?"

"There's still Jo's finger over at the police station." Yami pursed his lips thoughtfully, looking off into the distance. "It would have a more direct…connection to Jonouchi and could be used to bypass any blocks that might have been erected."

Kaiba's stomach tried for it's merit badge in knot making. The just thought of that finger made him sick. Sick remembering that it was Jo's finger. Sick thinking of the things Jo's clever fingers had made him feel, how he had loved those fingers, how he had kissed, nibbled and licked each one. Sick knowing that he was the cause of Jo loosing that finger, that he should have been the one who's finger was rotting in some little plastic bag with an evidence tag on it. "That's the only option?"

Yami frowned at him, his eyes narrowing. "Have you come up with any better ones?"

"No."

**Yuai**

It didn't look very dangerous. It was actually rather pretty. It looked vaguely like some kind of impressionist/ medieval/ the-elves-are-invading take on a knife handle. It was silvery and swirly with a sort of leaf shaped disk on the top. There was no blade or anything like that, just the handle, which had a habit of gleaming in odd spots where no light was actually hitting it. Hardly something that inspired confidence that it was capable of cheating death.

Still, Mr. Kallon had been specific. This was a Shadow Knife and this, he insisted, was what would save her from miserably dying in a pointless car accident and being reborn into another miserable life, which thanks to the font of joy that was the Millennium Necklace, she now knew would be a thrilling tour of Africa, complete with dead parents, being beaten out of various villages as an unwanted mouth to feed, long periods of starvation, a short brutal marriage and finally dying of dehydration in the middle of a desert, abandoned there by her loving spouse. Lovely, truly lovely. And it would be hers to cherish in less then twenty four hours. She turned the thing over in her fingers again, then shrugged and shoved it back into the leather wrappings that Bakura had wrapped it in.

"Hey, Yuai? Have you seen my math book?" Mokuba ambled past where she was perched on the stairs, overlooking the front entrance.

"Is it on the coffee table? I think I remember seeing it there." She stood up and followed the boy down to the living room.

The book wasn't on the table. They looked under the table, on top of the TV, behind the sofa, under the sofa, under the other chairs, in the dining room and were just making headway in the kitchen when the phone rang.

Mokuba eyed it suspiciously. Since the finger in the mail incident, he'd become wary of mail, phone calls and even e-mail messages. "Who do you think that could be?"

Yuai shrugged and watched the phone, waiting for the butler to pick it up. It was only fair, she took care of Mokuba. The butler took care of answering doors and phones and whatever else the man did between times. She had her suspicions that it involved the cook, at least two of the gardeners, a large quantity of vodka and a deck of cards. She poked her head into the refrigerator waiting for the answer to Mokuba's question.

"Mr. Kaiba, there is a call from Mr. Kado. He says he has orders to report to you or Mr. Kaiba if he acquired any information about the whereabouts of Mr. Jonouchi." The man's stuffy, overly formal voice toned from the intercom system.

Mokuba lunged for the phone. "Jo!" He yanked the receiver off the cradle and frantically hit buttons. "Mr. Kado, where is he!"

Yuai stood absently holding the refrigerator door open, not even noticing the cool air that whooshed lightly around her legs.

"Really!" Mokuba nodded his head enthusiastically, his eyes staring intently at the wall. "When?" He smiled so wide he looked like a demented Halloween pumpkin. "That's great! I'll call big brother and we'll be down there immediately." He pushed the button and hung up the phone, throwing it up into the air with a happy shriek. "They found someone who saw it. An old lady. She saw some guy in a jeep. She said that she heard a loud crashing sound and saw a man looking over the cliff where they found the car. She said he got into the jeep and there was a sleeping blond kid in there too. She saw him! She saw him! Mokuba dashed wildly around, first heading in one direction then running back in another, all the while babbling hysterically. "She even remembers the jeep. She said she sees it a lot at a market by where she lives! It's owned by this guy who lives in the town!" He hugged Yuai then dashed out the door. "Jo's coming home! Jo's coming home!"

Yuai looked down at the smashed phone that now lay in tiny plastic pieces on the floor and smiled, running after him in the hopes that she could save at least one phone to call her boss. The smile turned a bit evil as she thought of Yami having to deal with the larger Kaiba. "Wonder what he'll smash?"

**Bakura**

Pegasus, beyond his encyclopedic knowledge of the soap _Captive Passions_, had given him a few ideas about the Millennium Eye.

"It is attracted to people who are injured. Those who are grieving, lost, and in pain." Pegasus had explained, while staring vacantly out the window. "It likes it's host to be in pain. I think it feeds of misery and the more misery it can inflict, the happier it is."

"You're saying it knows what it's doing?" Bakura fingered his Ring. As far as he knew, the ring made no decisions on its own.

"I believe so, yes." Pegasus looked haunted. "When I first got it, I was still grieving for my wife, but I was still sane. After having it for a few years, I realized that it was somehow making sure I never got better. It was keeping me exactly as it wanted me, emotionally unstable and, increasingly, mentally unstable as well. The Eye felt… malevolent… like it was plotting, thinking, planning." He shook his head. "A terrifying sensation to have about something that was now a part of my body."

Bakura, now standing on a street corner eyeing a bar called The Black Crow, agreed with him. _Yes, it is terrifying to know some part of you is evil and completely out of your control. I lucked out. The idiot pharaoh drove that part of me away. Which, though I'll never let him know it, I'll be indebted to him for, for the rest of eternity._

He watched a few black swathed, artistically slumping figures walk into the gloom of the bar. He shuddered and walked across the street. The Black Crow was the hottest goth bar in the city, with more depressed, gloomy people per foot than any other place except Domino High School and since it was the Friday, it wouldn't be back in session for two more days.

He had considered visiting the depressed lot that he was unwillingly associated with. Little Yugi had been looking like the poster child for Prozac, and if Kaiba got any more depressed they'd have to scrape him off the sidewalk, in more ways than one. Yugi, though, had his yami to look out after him. He doubted that the pharaoh would allow his pipsqueak light to be taken in by the Eye. Bakura also doubted that Kaiba was in any danger from rogue Millennium Items. He wasn't going to take any bets that his dear, old friend, the high priest wasn't lurking like a shark under Kaiba's oh-so-sunny disposition. He'd seen that bastard's smile on Kaiba's lips a few times. The dragony, snarly , toothy smile that kept secrets close and mocked you for not knowing them.

All of which left him here. He took a deep breath. _It can't be that bad. I spent five millennia locked in the Millennium Ring. One idiotic club filled with dim witted geeks trying to be cool can't be worse than that. _He put on his most long suffering expression, checked to make sure all his black leather was appropriately depressing, flipped his now black streaked hair around his face and went in search of the Eye.

**Kaiba**

_Forget Shadow Magic. Put your bets on money and leg work. Those will get the job done without the tour of Domino City._ Kaiba settled back in his limo, smiling smugly out the window. Mokuba, Honda, Yugi, Yami and Ryou were all chatting excitedly around him, but he didn't pay them any attention. In just a few hours, he'd have Jo back. Kado had already tracked the name and the address of the man down. A security team was already on it's way and soon as they got there, if not sooner, Jo would be safe. Jo would be on his way home.

He took a deep breath, letting all the stress from the last few weeks start to seep out of his body. _I'm coming love. Just hold on a bit longer. I'm coming._

**Yuai**

The park was still pretty. Most of the kids had gone home for the day and only a few older couples wandered through the twisting paths that led through the trees. The sun was starting to slide gently down into a soft golden glow that promised a exquisite sunset. The warm breeze of the afternoon was now starting to cool off slightly as it ruffled the tree leaves and tossed around the flowers into shimmering carpets of moving color.

Yuai walked along one of the less used paths that would eventually take her up to the wooded area she used to camp in. Mr. Kallon walked beside her, smiling at the slowly disappearing day. She only had a few more minutes and something, somehow was going to smash her right out of this world and into Africa.

"Are you sure this will work?" She fingered the Shadow Blade nervously.

"Oh yes." Mr. Kallon turned and smiled at her. "We worked this out very carefully." He gave a small laugh. "We've had a long, long time to figure this out and this is the best and safest way we've come up with."

"There were other ways?" Yuai looked up hopefully. It wasn't that she thought it was going to be terrible or anything. After all the Shadow Knife had been amazingly…well…unknife like, but that amazing unknifishness was what was worrying her. She would have felt a lot more comfortable with something a bit more… or less, like a incomplete prop from a sword and sorcery movie. Every time she looked at the stupid thing she kept wondering if Gandalf was going to wander by asking if anyone had seen his paperweight.

"A few, but they really weren't all that pleasant. I particularly didn't like the one that involved the mass strangulation of frogs. Ever try to strangle a frog? Damn messy business. Difficult too." He shook his head.

"This isn't making me feel better." Yuai looked down at the unknife like knife in her hand.

"The Shadow Knife, if used at the precise moment you are supposed to die, will disrupt the curse that causes you to be endlessly reincarnated into torturous lives and die piteous deaths. It will cause the curse to rebound and break the cycle, allowing you to live the life you were meant to live." He smiled encouragingly down at her. "Its only power is over the curse. To you, the blade is completely harmless." He pointed down at the Knife. If it had really possessed a blade, it would have been slammed through her left palm, multiple times. "As you can see. It does absolutely nothing to you, yourself."

Yuai nodded, feeling slightly better. It may have been nothing but sleep deprivation, but it was reassuring that someone had thought this thing through. Instead of waking up tomorrow as a new born African, she could wake up in her comfy bed and look spend the day celebrating Jonouchi's homecoming. She wondered if she should run by the store and pick up some Rocky, Rocky Road ice cream for him. She could do that after she was free of the curse. Then again, maybe she should just let the limo driver pick her up in the park and stay far away from sidewalks for a bit.

"It's almost time, dearest. Do you know what to do?" Mr. Kallon motioned for her to sit on a nearby bench.

She nodded. "When you tell me to, I am supposed to press the…uh.. blade against my chest as if I was going to stab myself through the heart."

"That's right. Now it might take a moment or two for the curse to be disrupted, so expect a bit of pain and dizziness. Curses are nastier than colds sometimes." He checked his watch. It was an old, tarnished pocket watch with more dials, hands and numbers than Yuai could really see a need for. "Okay. I'll count down from ten. When I say zero, you pretend to plunge the blade… well, where the blade should be… into your heart."

Yuai nodded feeling a bit nervous. The pain and dizziness part sounded kind of nasty, but, then again, not as nasty as being ground to pieces by a car's front bumper.

"Ten. Nine. Eight."

She'd have to remember to call the school Monday. With Jonouchi home, Mokuba would never get to class.

"Seven. Six. Five."

Maybe she could get everyone together and, if Jo was well enough, have an ice cream party. Jo would love that. She'd send one of the divers for the ice cream.

"Four. Three. Two. One."

So much to do, once this was over. It'd be nice to see Jo again.

"Zero."

She lifted the knife and, playfully pretending to be a suicidal maiden out of a romance novel, slammed it against her chest. For a brief instant she felt a bit silly, sitting ther holding a unknifelike knife against her chest.

Mr. Kallon looked expectantly at her, then shrugged.

Then the pain hit. It felt like a real knife was driven through her chest. Her mouth dropped open in a voiceless cry of pain. Her body shuddered uncontrollably, spasming against the blade that wasn't there. Her heart shuddered, then fluttered piteously as it started failing. Pain and darkness wrapped around her mind, dimming it, then finally destroying it completely.

Mr. Kallon watched the small lifeless body drop off the side of the bench and thud onto the grass. He reached over, picked the Shadow Knife out of the delicate hand that was still clenched around the hilt and pocketed it, pausing a moment to gently stroke her hair. "I'm sorry to have lied to you, dearest. But it's really for the best."

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Okay, okay throw tomatoes. I'm braced for it…

I'm still taking ideas for how to write summaries.

**Clarity:** Everyone pictures Kaiba in their own way. That's the fun of fan fics. Face it, if we were to portray Kaiba as he is in the series, he'd probably kill Jonouchi before having sex with him. Yami would probably look shocked if Yugi askedfor a kiss, Bakura would never watch a soap opera, and Anzu would be perkily bouncing around andstanding with her feet wide apart and her knees together. Ever try standing like that? It hurts. Fan fics, with all their versions of all the characters are fun just because they are all different. Thanks for the ideas for the summary. I'm still letting people share their ideas, but so far yours is the only one that gives any really solid advice. BTW where is your fic? I'd love to read it.

**Jackie: **Ah another fan of _Captive Passions_! It's a lovely little soap that our favorite thief dearly loves. You'll hear more about it as the story progresses. Will Jessica have a two headed baby? Will Paula ever find out he is Jessica's brother? Will anyone save Bakura from this awful soap? For answers to these questions and more, stay tuned.

**Hikari Raine:** Yep, that's me, twisted. I like the twenty chapter plot lines too. I have problems believeing that everything convienently happens all at the same time. It seems rushed. Twenty chapers gives me, the plot and the characters enough time to do what needs to be done without imploding.

**xMinkx:** Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you! I love it! Have a great vacation!


	7. Losses

Disclaimer: _Yugi-oh_ is the property of Kazuki Takahashi, who is a genius. Everything that isn't his or someone else's is mine.

**Author's Note: **This part is more than a bit Yuai centered. I do apologize, but I need my OC to get into place so that she can do her job at helping the plot along. I promise, she is not going to become a obnoxious Mary Sue! She is not going to take over the story! She has a part to play and for this section, she's got to take center stage so she can perform her role. She will then retire from center stage and just enable certain things that have to happen to happen. (I do admit however that the part about her looks is me giggling at Mary Sues in general. I couldn't resist. The temptation was too much…had to poke fun at it…I just had to!) Gomen, gomen. authoress points But I gave you a really neat Bakura moment! slinks off apologizing and muttering about pushy OCs

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

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**Psyche**

Chapter Seven: Losses

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**Yuai**

"Good morning Sunshine." A snarly, grumpy voice growled next to her. Yuai jumped, only to find that she was weighed down by what seemed to be a couple hundred yards of poofy white cloth. She swam up through the many layers of delicate as a cloud, white veils; exquisitely beautiful shawls of immaculate, pristine whiteness; and whisper soft, pure, floatingly light as down fripperies. To her horror she found that most of these items where now attached to her in the form of a fairytale like dress of nearly blinding radiance. It took awhile but she managed to finally sit.

"Who the hell put me in this!" It took effort, but she managed to wave her hand at the cascades of dreamily soft, jewel encrusted silks that still pinned her firmly down to the bed she was laying on.

The grumpy voice gave a snort of laughter, "Courtiers. With you taking a long vacation, they decided to play dress up. Guess who got voted in as their dolly?"

Yuai tugged, pulled and hauled the dress so she could sit on the side of the bed and look around, irritably batting away breezy white veils that spilled around her like sparkling mist. The room was, like the dress, a creation of white and light. The room was basically the size of the gymnasium at school, with white marble walls, and delicate columns that spiraled upwards a dizzying height to a ceiling of cerulean blue. Across the white marble floor an entire wall was made of floor to ceiling windows made up of hundreds of squares of crystal that seemed determined to pour as much light in the room as their little crystalline selves could manage. She was sitting in the center of the room on a raised bed that had an eerie resemblance to a funeral platform. The kind they put dead dignitaries on so that the masses could solemnly file by, nodding their heads and saying trite things. The only dark spot in the sea of light and pristine loveliness, was sitting on the only other piece of furniture in the room.

He was smiling sarcastically at her, "Have a good trip?"

"Excuse me. Where the hell am I? I was sitting in the park with Mr. Kallon and now I'm…" She wanted to gesture to the overpoweringly lovely room, but the gems, peals and stitching that weighed down the cuffs of her dress made the movement prohibitively difficult. "…in Heaven with a surly …." She eyed him a little more closely. "Magician of Black Chaos?"

He nodded sagely, though still managing to lace in a great deal of snide mockery, "Your brains are scrambled. Must be having to spend the last five thousand years in the stimulating company of humans."

She eyed his smug expression, "This isn't how I pictured my afterlife."

"Well dearest, you aren't precisely dead." Mr. Kallon walked into the room, shrugging into a long grey purple cassock like garment. "You just aren't living the life you were living a few moments ago."

"Masochist." The Magician of Black Chaos nodded his head to him in greeting. "You should have stayed there for at least a century till she calms down."

Mr. Kallon smiled serenely. "I'm sure she'll be more than happy, just as soon as we release her from that dress and she gets her memory back."

"Don't count on it Mr-This-Won't-Hurt-A-Bit." Yuai hauled at the volumously ethereal skirts and trains of her dress, trying not to cut herself on the bright diamonds that encrusted the eye blindingly white overdress. It took her a few tries, but she managed to stand up. "That hurt!"

He looked away, "Well, yes. I am truly sorry about that dearest, but it was necessary. Would you have used the Shadow Knife if you had known it would hurt like that?"

"Just wait till I get out of this dress and I'll give you my answer." Yuai, pulling, hauling and tugging for all her worth managed to take a small step forward.

"Just remember, when your done killing him." The Magician of Black Chaos smiled nastily, "it's your turn to hold court."

Kaiba, Mokuba, Yami, Yugi, Honda, etc.

The sky was now pitch dark outside the car window. The mountain's vistas now hidden behind night's black cloak. It would take at least five more hours to reach the convention center and three hours after that to wind through the back roads into the remote place Jo was being held.

The information that Kado had obtained indicated that the man who had Jo was the caretaker of a summer camp, nearly a hundred and thirty miles from the convention center that Jonouchi disappeared out of, so Kaiba found himself stuck in a limo with a group of bouncy, excited…acquaintances for the next eight hours. Okay, maybe he could say… close acquaintances. Close as in nearly sitting on top of him. Close as in, if they got any closer he'd be having sex with them. Close as in he was now intimately familiar with the fact that Honda had eaten a cheeseburger with onions before getting into the limo. Close as in if he didn't get out of this limo soon, Jo wouldn't have any friends to return to. Close as in he was going to disinherit Mokuba if he didn't stop yelling in his ear like that. Close as in he wondered if there was some kind of shadow spell that he could cast to silence the lot of them permanently.

"None that work well." Yami's voice murmured next to him.

Kaiba arched an eyebrow questioningly at him.

"I've considered it and it wouldn't work. The space is too confined." Yami held a hand out towards him, holding something in it.

Kaiba extended his hand and found himself the possessor of a set of earplugs. He looked back at Yami, who smiled at him.

"How do you think I do it?" The pharaoh smiled serenely and cuddled back into the plush leather upholstery closing his eyes.

**Bakura**

Bakura trudged, head down, shoulders drooping, into the bar. It couldn't even be called a nightclub. It was small, dingy, dirty and depressing. It also happened to be one of the hotspots in the city for suicidal losers who were just about to pitch themselves off a conveniently located bridge. The bartender, who looked like Boris Karloff pitch hitting for Bela Lugossi, loomed behind a gloomy bar.

Eyeing the dead roach on the bar stool he was just about to sit on, he considered just going home to his light. With any luck, he could convince his beautiful tenshi to cook him some dinner. He could then spend the rest of this miserable evening cuddled on the sofa with Ryou, sipping a beer, eating candy coated peanuts and watching taped episodes of _Captive Passions. _He was at least a week behind with all the excitement and running around. Sighing in resignation, he flicked the bug off and plunked himself on the stool.

"So this chick says, "Where are you going?" The gloomy lowlife that drooped forlornly on his barstool next to him was leaning listlessly on the bar talking to Boris.

"Should have run." The bartender wiped out a glass with a dingy grey cloth and set it on the counter.

"Well, I backed up and got out the door and she's leaning there, all weird and everything, yelling "Come back, don't ya wanna fuck me." It was scary man, scary." The drooping lowlife shivered in horror, flicked another roach out of his drink and downed the whole glass.

"Should be careful of those online date girls." The bartender tossed his cloth under the counter and turned to Bakura. "What can I get you?"

"Vodka, hold the roaches." Noticing a small dish, the yami pulled it over. A small flock of flies rose from it, so he shoved it back before he could get a look at the contents.

"Yeah. I answered one. The chick said she was slightly overweight." The lowlife drooped farther, nearly hiding under the bar. "She was five hundred, if she was a pound."

"Better doing it the old fashion way." A semi-clear glass of liquid that could have been vodka in another life, appeared in front of Bakura.

He took it and, gathering his courage, took a sip. _Drain cleaner._ Bakura shrugged and downed the rest of it. He really needed to get into this being depressed thing more. Compared to the people he was now associating with, he was far too cheery. As he watched the two not so gleeful people discuss the barren wasteland of their lives, he contemplated what he wanted to be moody about. _Five thousand years stuck in a metal object? I want depressed, not suicidal… Spending eternity with the pharaoh? That's worse, at least with the ring I could pretend I could kill myself…Having to deal with the Ryou's friends? Not bad, but thinking about that leads to periods of lost time and waking up with Ryou asking what I'm doing with a bloody weapon, which of course leads to no sex, which does in a way lead to me being depressed. I'll use it as a back up. How about gaining a body and finding out I'm a copy of my hikari? Now, that will do. I had such a great body, tall, muscular, great scar on my cheek, tall, athletic, muscular, agile , tall, elegant, muscular, tan, tall, had great blue eyes, have I mentioned being tall and having muscles? I miss those…_ With a morose sigh he waved his glass at the bartender, "Another, and this time, who cares about the roaches.."

The bartender nodded and poured another.

"Women, who can figure them." The lowlife drooped even more, nearly laying on the floor, waving his glass in the air as he talked. "One minute everything's just fine, the next you've got a court restraining order on you and you can't be within a mile's radius of a school."

Bakura tried the drooping and propped his chin on his hand. He could see his old body. It had been great. He used to be able to dodge and turn through the market, with a pack of guards on his heels, for hours and not break a sweat. Now look at him, stuck in a little, fragile body that got winded if he jogged down the street.

"Women, they're evil. Pure evil." The bartender leaned over the bar and poured some liquid into the lowlife's wavering glass.

Bakura shifted uncomfortably on the stool as his leather pants pinched in a unpleasant place. He'd been tall too, all elegant muscles and long limbs. He hadn't been one of those idiots that loomed like hippos at the edge of the market, with their over developed muscles and shaved heads. No, he'd had long legs and arms with smooth cords of muscle under tanned skin. He defiantly hadn't looked like a girly teenage boy with soft round limbs and not enough height to intimidate even the most stunted of bullies.

"Maybe I should just go up to some pretty girl and ask her out…" The man wailed hopelessly from the floor.

Bakura twitched again, trying to not look like he was pulling at the crotch of his pants, but damn the things were chaffing and pinching. _Should have just worn a pair of black jeans, in this light no one would notice the difference… unless they started feeling me up…Oh, great why did I have to think of that…_ He contemplated his old body again. The scar, how he had loved the scar. He hadn't loved getting it, but once it had healed over, it'd been great. Instead of having a pretty boy face, he'd had character. Oh, then his eyes… blue eyes. They were his father's eyes, but while his father had been a gentle smiling man, with clear, smiling eyes, his eyes had been dark as the sky just before evening, dark and dangerous as the Nile during the flood time.

The lowlife on the floor wailed, "I should just be a monk. A MONK!" He thrashed around and kicked Bakura's barstool.

Bakura, drooping, and trying his best to be depressed, wasn't ready for the sudden feeling of his chair being knocked out from under him and fell backward. His drink, with it's pickled roach, smacking him in the face, the vodka burning into his eyes. "Aaahhhhgggg."

"Oh shit, sorry man, sorry." He heard the lowlife babble.

"I am going to gut you!" Bakura thrashed around, blinded by the vodka. "Shit! Fucking shithead!"

A hand touched his shoulder and he swung on it, feeling a satisfying thud of flesh meeting flesh at a good clip.

"Ooohhhfff. Hey, just trying to help here." The bartender's melancholy voice sounded a bit stunned.

"I've got the fucking shit in my eyes." Bakura wiped at them frantically, vodka and tears streaming down his face.

"Okay, hold still. It's just me. I've got a towel with some water." A damp cloth was pressed into his hand.

"Shit. Fuck this hurts." Bakura slapped the cloth over his eyes. There was a scuffle of feet and a pair of hands touched him.

"Stop whining and let's get you up." The bartender pulled him to his feet and guided him, one shuffling step at a time to a chair. The vinyl creaked wretchedly under his weight and his pants chose that moment to return to their new hobby of trying to geld him.

"Fuck this, I'm going home." Bakura tried to stumble to his feet, but the Boris Karloff reject held him still.

"You have any friends to pick you up?" The man pulled the cloth away and handed him another.

Bakura tried to blink his eyes clear, but things remained blurry. He wiped his eyes carefully, then stopped. Blinking he looked at his own hand, then wiped his eyes again and looked again. Slender, calloused, tan fingers were where his pale, Ryou-like one's had been a few moments ago. Blinking and wiping his eyes he looked down at himself. His leather pants were straining around the seams, trying to encompass his now longer, far more buff body. Tan ankles showed clearly beneath the cuff of the pants and his feet were now giving him hell about being in too small leather boots. He touched his cheek, feeling the long missed ridges of scar tissue.

"Oh shit… I'm me again."

**Yuai**

"This is just so wrong." Yuai looked at herself in a mirror. Mr. Kallon had, with the help of a rather sharp knife, freed her of the beautiful dress from hell, much to the side splitting amusement of the Magician of Black Chaos, who appeared to be either named Asshole, or Ledowr, and had led her to a equally lovely room that had real furniture in it.

It also had real clothes in it, or, semi-real clothes. She glowered at the delicate ensemble of jewels, silk, gold embroidery and delicate underskirts of light as a breath silk tulle. It wasn't, if she was going to be honest with herself, the clothes that annoyed her. They were a poor girl's fantasy come true. Underneath all the denials; scabby, bruised knees; sloppy mismatched socks; and dirty, frumpy, poorly fitting outfits; she had dreamily wished that one day she would be petted, pampered, loved and dressed like a princess. Well, she got the dressed like a princess part, at least.

It was the reflection that stared back at her from the mirror that set her teeth a-grinding. "I look like a freak of nature!"

"Dearest, I don't see any problem with how you look." Mr. Kallon soothed as he whisked the remnants of her previous dress aside. "You are lovely."

The Yuai in the mirror, indeed was lovely, with her slender bones, fair as cream complexion, lustrously beautiful blue eyes that were set in a exquisitely perfect face, trim curvy waist, and a pair of swan down pale, I-can't-believe-I –can-still-walk-upright breasts. But the hair! She glowered at it with her now heart-stoppingly lovely eyes, "I have gold hair! I'm not talking blond. The stuff's gold." She pulled a long silken tress irritably. "This is just not right!"

"Dearest, that's how you've always looked." Mr. Kallon gently shooed her away from the mirror and toward the door. "Just as soon as your memory comes back, you'll realize that …"

"I'm a freak of nature." Yuai grumped, pouting with rosebud soft lips. "I always wondered what it would be like to be a super model, but this is …wrong. Deeply wrong."

"Well let it be wrong." Asshole, or Ledowr snapped from the nearby doorway. "Court starts in a couple hours and," he pointed to himself, "I am not going to sit there and listen to one more twit whine about how unfair their life is."

Mr. Kallon shooed him out too and bustled them down the hall. "That's fine Ledowr. I'm sure that after five thousand years of your scintillating presence, they'll be relieved with the change."

People whisked by them as they were hurried down the hall, many doing double takes and a few stumbling as they missed steps as they noted Yuai. Little whispers echoed unintelligibly from behind them, full of surprise.

_Probably wondering who the moron with the gold hair is. There had better be a beauty salon someplace with lots and lots of hair dye._ Yuai tried to slink as unobtrusively as possible in Mr. Kallon's wake, well as unobtrusively as possible in a nearly glowing white dress with hundreds, if not thousands of sparkling diamonds. _Yugi, where are you when I really need you! Find me! Bring clothes! Help! I promise I will even wear the Millennium Necklace! I won't hide it in the gardener's shed. If you bring hair dye, I'll even wear it to bed at night!_

Suddenly, she stopped. It wasn't funny. She wouldn't be going home. She wouldn't be seeing Yugi again. There wouldn't be pizza at Pizza heaven. She wouldn't be there when Jo got home, to welcome him with ice cream. Mokuba would run around meditating and forgetting his pencil case in the morning without her there to nudge him aware and hand him his crumpled homework. She wouldn't be going back to class. She would never eat another meal in the cafeteria while Honda and Yugi placed bets on what it was. She would never pass high school. Never get a diploma, make plans for college, move out of the Kaiba estate, get married, have kids, wave at Mokuba as he graduated college, watch Jo go bald and get a middle age pot belly.

"I want to go home." She looked wildly around. If there was a way into this place, there had to be a way out.

"Dearest, you are home." Mr. Kallon, nudged her along. "You've been away for awhile, but this is your home."

"No, all my friends…" Yuai shook her head.

"You can see them all you like." Mr. Kallon placed a comforting arm around her shoulders. "Would you like to see them now?"

"Oh, stop it with the kind nurse routine." Ledowr grabbed Yuai and shoved her toward a window. She wiggled desperately to get free. "Look out there."

She appeared to be in a rather large stone building set atop a cliff. Tall pale stone walls marched around the building, like castle walls, enclosing a miniature city of parks, buildings, paths and ponds. Gaily colored banners waved from poles. Men dressed in the same bright colors with swords, lances and other medieval type weapons walked with military precision across the walls. Below, a much, much larger city sprawled in brown stone and green trees like a carpet around the base of the cliff.

"This is your home. You were born here." He held her still as he pointed out the window. "This is where you belong. You don't belong in the mortal realm, wiping snot from some rich kids face. You don't belong in some moronic school learning the fine art of sleeping with your eyes open. You defiantly don't belong in some mortal ass' bed." He let her go. "You belong here. This is the Shadow Realm princess, and it's your responsibility. You've goofed off for five millennia, so get back to work!"

She was abruptly yanked out of Ledowr's hands and found herself in Mr. Kallon's protective embrace. "You don't have to be unpleasant. Soon as she calms down, she'll get her memories back." He smiled gently down at her. "Would you like to see your friends? You may not be able to speak with them right now, but would it make you feel better if you see them?"

"Yes, please." Yuai nodded meekly.

"Good girl. Now, what I am about to show you is really something special." He steered her back down the hall, leaving Ledowr glowering in their wake.

They walked down more halls, leaving more stunned whispers behind them like bread crumbs. Rich tapestries, glowing candles, soft carpets woven in complicated patterns and rich, polished furniture lined the walls. The occasional rooms, they went through, were all light, bright with carved wood and delicate, intricately carved furnishings. The inside walls all seemed to be made of differing colors of marble. The rooms she had first found herself in had been white and gold. The other rooms seemed a mix of grey with white or green with black marble.

Mr. Kallon still striding along with one arm around Yuai's shoulders and occasionally sending the trailing Ledowr a admonishing look, finally pushed open a carved wooden door and waved Yuai inside. In the center of the room, what looked to be a rather large stone basin on a pedestal stood. Along the sides of the room, a line of plush, upholstered chairs waited. Ledowr flung himself into one with a bored sigh.

Mr. Kallon took a slender silver pitcher from a nearby table and handed it to Yuai. "Pour this into the Mirror and think of your friends."

Yuai looked around. There were some nice windows on one side of the room, but nothing else that was even somewhat mirror like. "What mirror?"

Ledowr snickered and pointed to the stone pedestal with it's basin. "That thing there."

Mr. Kallon looked offended. "The Mirror is a piece of artwork that has been handed down for thousands of years, from master to pupil. I'll have you know it was once owned by an elven queen."

Yuai stepped up to it, looking at it suspiciously. "It's a bird bath."

"Mirror." Mr. Kallon frowned at her, as Ledowr snickered even more evilly then before. "Do you want to see your friends or not."

Yuai, feeling silly, poured the water into the bird…mirror.. thing. It swirled around for a moment then clouded up. She smiled as the image of Yami with Yugi curled in his lap appeared. They seemed to be in a limo. Kaiba with a sleeping Mokuba cuddled next to him sat nearby with a the rest of her friends sprawled in various poses of sleep across the upholstery. She smiled relieved to see them. A warm comforted feeling wrapped around her. Life couldn't be that bad if her friends were all there. "They're on their way to pick up Jonouchi."

As she said that, the image in the mirror changed. With a cry of horror she stepped back. The mirror now showed Jonouchi.

**Jonouchi**

It didn't bother him that much anymore. He knew he wasn't getting out of here and, while he'd been scared and frantic at first, a blissful, numb feeling had taken it's place. Now, he just wanted it over. He was tired, he hurt and he just wanted this over. He lay on the same bloody, stinking mattress, that he couldn't even smell anymore, probably, he thought, because I stink more, and listened to the man shriek to himself outside the door.

The shrieking was about the only thing he could consider normal in this place. The man shrieked most of the time. Sometimes, he'd just yell at the TV, or at him, or at the wreck of a car that was parked in the front of the cabin. Most often though, he'd shriek, long, high pitched screams, as if someone was tearing him apart from the inside out. He babbled sometimes when he was in one of his shrieking fits, screaming at someone, telling them to leave him alone, pleading, begging, threatening, sobbing. Not that it mattered, but it was getting familiar, almost comfortable.

He closed his eyes, waiting. After the shrieking, the man would come in here and either beat the hell out of him again or rape him. Again, not that it mattered anymore. His body was broken in too many places, too many cuts, bruises and wounds that hadn't been tended and had become infected, had shut down too much of his body to really feel what happened to it anymore. He just hoped that this time the man would get carried away and kill him. He wanted to sleep.

In a distant way, he was a bit sad. He would have liked to see Kaiba again. From what the man shrieked at times, and the rotting infection in his hand from where one finger had been cut off with a pair of garden sheers, he knew this whole thing had been aimed at his lover. He knew Kaiba and his overgrown sense of responsibility. He would have like to tell him it wasn't his fault, that he still loved him and not to be too sad. He'd wait. Whatever there was in the afterlife, he'd wait there for Kaiba, to great him with smiles and kisses and what kept yous.

"They can't do this! I had plans!" The man slammed into the room, glaring down at the skeletally thin figure that was curled in a fetal position on the stained mattress. He kicked the figure and watched in roll limply over. "Get up slut!"

The figure didn't move. It really hadn't moved much for over a week, but he kicked it again. "Get up. We're leaving. They ain't taking you away from me that easy."

He bent down and grabbed one bone thin arm. He'd have grabbed it's hair, if it still had any, but he'd shaved it off a few weeks ago when he realized it had lice. He hauled it out the door, dragging it behind him, not bothered by the fact that it wasn't even making an attempt at walking.

"Fucking bastard, you think your just going to waltz in here Kaiba and take your fuck toy back." The man ranted as he hauled the figure out the door, not really noticing or caring that a trail of blood smeared across the floor, down the steps and across the grass after him. "Well, you ain't Kaiba."

Jo, for the fist time in weeks, smelled fresh air, the crisp scent of pine, the crushed, green smell of grass, the cool, wet breeze from the mountain canyons. Faintly, from a distance he could hear the sound of water, rushing bright, fast and clear through the forest. If he could still have done it, he would have smiled. What a nice way to leave. A few last moments of pretty sounds and smells before he went to sleep. He opened his eyes, wondering if he could see anything. It was still very early in the morning, the sun had barely begun to rise above the tree line, but a few things appeared. Over to one side, there were pines with soft bushes nestled between their roots. A carpet of pine needles and tiny branches scattered here and there in the pre-dawn gloom.

"I was going to do you good." The man snarled, still dragging the unresponsive body along behind him. "Burn you, or tear you apart. Got some chains and was going to tie you to a tree and the bumper and let'r rip."

Jo didn't pay attention. The sun was rising a bit more and he could see the soft pink flowers that peeked shyly from the bushes. Someplace a squirrel started chattering as the birds woke from their sleep and greeted the morning with curious warbles.

"Fuck you Kaiba." The man screamed turning to look back over his shoulder.

The low purr of a motor could be heard below the chatter of the birds. Jo wished he could still move enough to look. It would be nice to see Kaiba again, even for a moment, but the man started moving again.

"I could still do ya." The man panted, he was coming to a rise in the terrain. "Just have to think of how." He looked around as he rushed up the slope. "Too late to burn ya. Left the damn knife at the house or I could gut ya and wrap your insides around a bush. Read about that once. Seemed kinda painful." He came to a flat space and paused to look back. "Still got the gun, but, fuck it, that's too quick."

A group of voices came from back at the cabin. Jo could faintly make out the tones. Yami was there, so Yugi was probably nearby. Honda's voice called something back, causing a faint smile to tug at his cracked, tattered lips. Then Kaiba's voice, low pitched and commanding. He closed his eyes to focus on that voice, letting it flow into him. _Just one minute, is that too much to ask? I just want to see him for one minute._

"The river. Damn it, came the wrong way. If I'm going to drown ya, I should have taken the other path. Fuck it." He yanked the limp figure after him as he raced across the rocky, flat expanse and dove into the forest. "I ain't lettin' Kaiba win. I ain't. He destroyed my life. He took everythin'. My little girl, my wife, even my fuckin' dog." The man sobbed. "They were everythin', EVERYTHIN' and he took them!"

The voices were calling to each other. They seemed to be getting closer. The man threw Jonouchi against a tree near the edge of a long drop into the raging river that raced below them. He glared at the pitiful, broken thing that had once been a person. "But he ain't gettin' you." He pulled out a gun and aimed it.

**Kaiba**

The trail of blood led upwards toward a plateau. Kaiba, with Yami and Honda at his heals raced upwards. The blood was fresh and bright, it couldn't be more then a few minutes old. Behind him, he could hear Mokuba herding the other's into the limo to wait for Kado and his men. It was bad enough that Mokuba had seen that…den, he didn't need his little brother to see anything else, and from the look on Yami's face, he didn't want him to see what Yami was planning to do when he found the man responsible for that room they had walk into. He didn't mind seeing. Hell, just as long as the pharaoh let him have his…say… first, he could do whatever he wanted to whatever was left.

At the top of the plateau, the trail took a sharp right, heading for a stand of trees. Kaiba nearly bolted into the clearing, only to be hauled back by Yami.

"Ambush." The shorter one nodded to the edge of the clearing. "Stay covered and get moving."

He nodded. No point getting killed before he introduced himself to the man who had Jo. He raced through the bushes, not noticing the cuts and slashes from the branches. They picked up the trail again. It headed back towards a drop off. Below them, the sound of water rushing through a narrow pass in a valley echoed up to them.

"Where the fuck are they?" Honda panted, whispering and looking around.

"Up." Yami whispered back, nodding toward a slight incline. He stopped, stumbling as a huge explosion of Shadow Magic thundered around him. It sent invisible shock waves down the mountain staggering him. "Jo!"

"Shut up." Kaiba took another look at the trail, and started forward, feeling something dark wash through him for a moment, then it was gone, leaving a frantic, lost feeling in it's wake.

A single shot rang through the clear air.

**Yuai**

"Do something!" She yanked at Mr. Kallon, screaming and pointing to the mirror, that showed Jonouchi being thrown against a tree. "I don't care what, but do something."

Ledowr lazed over and looked, "It looks like the kid's about dead, probably better off if the guy put him out of his…"

Yuai whipped around snarling, "When he dies, so do you."

Ledowr stepped back. He admitted, in the last few millennia, he'd forgotten a few things. Things like Yuai's loyalty to her friends, even the one's that didn't deserve it. Things like her temper, the fact that it curled in soft peaceful waves till roused, then it shattered down like a tidal wave. Things like the vast amount of sheer power she was now radiating, making her blue eyes glow eerily and her golden hair whip around her as if she stood in the middle of a wind storm. He truly had forgotten why the little slip of fluff was the Lady of the Realm. He shouldn't have, after all, he voted her in.

"Dearest…" Mr. Kallon, reached out a hand to sooth her, the look in his eyes betraying to Ledowr that he too had forgotten why they'd shanghaied the girl into dealing with all the assorted craziness that passed for their Realm.

"Save him!" Yuai slapped his hand away. "You got me here. Bring him too! Anything! Do something!"

The man was aiming now, grinning as he heard Kaiba's, Yami's and Honda's frantic steps.

"You might not like…" Ledowr, edged uneasily, trying to keep the Mirror between himself and the volatile piece of fluff.

The fluff snarled. He wondered if she realized she had fangs now. Pointy ones too, he noted absently, and they looked rather sharp.

"Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you…."

**Kaiba**

The man was dead. He lay next to the long drop off down to the churning, swift river below. A handgun lay next to his hand and a small trickle of blood oozed slowly from his right temple. The grass around him was crushed, and against a tree, right at the very edge of the chasm, was a bright patch of blood. But no Jo. He stood there blinking and looking around. Where was Jo?

Yami stepped forward, looking carefully at the dead man. "He isn't hurt, except for the gunshot." He looked towards the tree, then stepped to the edge and looked down.

Honda shook his head and called, "Hey Jo! It's me Honda, where are you man?" He looked at Kaiba and Yami, who were both staring at the river below them. "He's got to be someplace." He looked around the small clearing, then jogged into the trees calling. "Jo. Come on man. It's me. Just call to me."

"Too much blood." Yami whispered, looking down. "The man didn't leave it. He's barely scratched and Jo couldn't have walked away, not bleeding like that."

Kaiba nodded, watching the water rush in a white foam through the pass. He could hear Honda still calling, but it seemed distant. "I thought, just for a … that it would be…"

Yami nodded, "It's over now. No one can hurt him anymore."

"Not comforted pharaoh." Kaiba wondered what would happen if he took one more step. The river would probably pound the life out of him before he got a chance to drown. He wavered at the edge.

"Mokuba."

Kaiba looked over at the ancient spirit, who was looking sadly back. "What?"

"If you step, Mokuba will be the one to pay." Yami shook his head. "Do you really want to leave him?"

"No." He stepped back, putting distance between himself and the lure of joining Jo. He looked one more time around the area, then turned and walked away.

"Jo, come on man, if you can hear me, yell or something." Honda's voice was getting fainter in the distance.

Yami looked around, trying to figure out where the blast of magic had come from. The dead man reeked of magic, an old, dank, corrupt smell, but the magic he'd been nearly flattened by had felt different, darker yet cleaner. He prowled around, hoping to find some clue, but nothing seemed out of place. He looked back over to the cliff, hearing Honda still calling desperately, then shook his head and followed Kaiba. First he had to deal with his hikari. Yugi would be devastated. His little light had been so excited about finding his friend, to see Kaiba's face as he walked back without Jonouchi, would destroy the fragile hope he'd been holding onto. Only after he was sure Yugi would be able to cope without him, he, Bakura and Marik would need to come back here and see what had really happened.

**Jonouchi**

He really was a bit disappointed. He'd expected that the afterlife would be a lot less painful. Instead of peace, love and various dead relatives, he had blurred glimpses of the Magician of Black Chaos looking ticked; the Dark Sage looking like a startled hen who's chicks had just rebelled; an infuriated angel that looked vaguely like Yuai; a Mystic Elf that looked harried and three white haired arch-angels, who seemed bent on glowering at everything in sight. He closed his eyes as a small, slender red eyed, black haired…devil?.. slipped into the room and whispered to one of the arch-angels. "When did master get here and who the fuck beat the shit out of him?"

Heaven, it appeared, needed a bit of work.

* * *

Okay, I made it extra long to make up for it being late. Forgiven? How about if I promise no more Jonouchi torture?

**Clarity:** Your address didn't get through.. can you try again? I'm really interested in what you're doing. Well, you were right. There was not way that Jo was going to be there when Kaiba caught up to him. Just wait though, the end of the Kaiba and Jonouchi torture is in sight. Unhappily, that will begin right about the time the Mokuba torture begins...

**Hikari Raine: **Okay, as you see, I didn't. She's alive, well and giving the Magician of Black Chaos hell. Yep, there is torture here and more on the way. After all what would a concluding story be like without the torture?


	8. Allies

Disclaimer: _Yugi-oh_ is the property of Kazuki.Takahashi, who is a genius. Everything that isn't his or someone else's is mine.

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

AN: I just want to say, don't judge Mrs. Jonouchi too harshly. People react to grief in various ways. She just isn't coping well at the moment.

Ahmose is Egyptian for the moon is born

Koori is Japanese for ice

Shimo is Japanese for frost

**Psyche**

Chapter 8: Allies

* * *

Jonouchi

Jonouchi sat next to the small fountain, watching jewel toned fish dart through the clear water of the blue tiled pool. Above him a soft canopy of bright silk fluttered in a light breeze. Around the courtyard he sat in, long stemmed flowers that resembled fluttering butterflies nodded lazily amidst the darker foliage of lavender scented bushes. Standing at the paths that led to the fountain two men with long white hair and sapphire blue eyes stood guard. A slender girl, with identical hair and eyes, hovered protectively a couple feet away, with the even more slender black haired, red eyed teen shifting uncertainly next to her.

Jo, however, didn't pay them much attention. He sat staring down at his hands, flexing his fingers, all ten of them. He'd woken up here a few days ago, expecting, at the very least, to find himself back in that cabin. Expecting that the whole episode with the man dragging him out to the edge of the cliff had been nothing but another dream. Expecting, if he was dead, to wake up in the afterlife with his relatives standing around him smiling. Instead, he had woken up to Kaiba's beloved dragons, in human form, guarding him. His own Red Eyes, looking like a rather small, scruffy and determined kid, sitting on the foot of his bed, and the Dark Sage looking rather proud of himself. He had also woken up to find that all signs of the last few…weeks?...months?...were gone. The only thing different between how he was when the psycho had lured him out of the hotel with a false message from Kaiba, to the time he found himself here, was that his hair was now half way down his back. Otherwise, he was eerily fine.

He flexed his fingers again. They were all there. All ten of them flexing, moving and feeling just like they should, as if nothing had happened to them. As if it had been nothing but a bad dream and he had just woken up to find himself here. He could remember the man cutting off his finger, the feeling of the garden sheers as they sliced through skin, muscle and bone in one quick, almost neat snap, the stunned disbelief as his own finger lay on the ground twitching slightly, the pain, the screams, the blood that didn't seem to ever want to stop pouring out of his hand.

One of the dragons shifted, the largest of the males. Jo looked up quickly, ready to run if the dragon moved again. The female cooed softly and came to sit next to him as the other male shifted his attention toward the castle.

"It's only Lord Kallon." His Red Eyes came to stand next to him, looking both protective and jittery at the same time. "Probably checking to make sure you ate." The dragon teen looked around hurriedly for the plate that had Jonouchi's lunch. It sat half empty on the fountain edge. "Could you shove a bit more into your mouth before he comes?"

Jonouchi shook his head, trembling and pressing himself into the warm side of the dragon girl. As the footsteps approached, he felt a ball of pure terror start curling in his stomach. She cooed again and smoothed his hair.

"E'on, Master Jonouchi has eaten enough." The larger Blue Eyes, Koori, turned completely and faced the Dark Sage as he came down the path.

"He barely eats." E'on grumbled, picking up the plate, his red eyes inspecting it carefully. A half eaten, immature, Hungry Burger sat on it. "Isn't he a growing boy? Aren't burgers their preferred diet?"

"He was doing fine till you told him that the grown up burgers sneak up behind you and bite your…" The smaller male Blue Eyes snatched the plate away.

"Hey, they do!" E'on rubbed his butt. "But I killed this one first! It didn't even wiggle."

"Ahem." Lord Kallon stood looking at them.

Jonouchi shivered and cuddled closer to the Blue Eyes girl. Honestly, he didn't think Lord Kallon meant him any harm. The Dark Sage had treated him with nothing but gentleness since he woke up. He really seriously doubted that even if the man meant to harm him, Kaiba's dragons would allow it. He knew that his own dragon would, in his own bumbling, over eager, not too bright way, protect him.

Still, he couldn't help the fear that swamped over him whenever anyone approached. Yesterday, he had nearly clawed through a wall when he'd accidentally bumped into a surprised looking Celtic Guardian in one of the castle halls. He'd only had E'on with him and the Red Eyes had taken his true form, which of course didn't really fit in the hall way, which of course caused both Jo and the shocked elf to be suddenly squished into the walls, which led to the three Blue Eyes running into the hall to help, which led to E'on thrashing around in panic, which led to the Magician of Black Chaos arriving to see why a large portion of the castle wall had just fallen into the garden. Maybe he had a good reason to be afraid…of the dragons.

Lord Kallon looked down at the plate that the smaller Blue Eyes male held. "I see you've had lunch." He looked doubtfully at the burger, then over at the other Blue Eyes.

They all pointed at E'on in unison.

"Hey, it's a burger! Master eats them. During one duel, the kid with the pointy hair told master to hurry up so they could go catch a burger." The little dragon, tossed his head in uncertain defiance. "I just caught it for him, since his isn't up to hunting them himself."

Jo took deep breaths trying to stop shaking as he listened to his dragon justify the monster burger he'd been served for lunch. It honestly hadn't been a bad burger, it was only when he found a sharp, serrated tooth in it did he start wondering where it had come from. From the looks Kaiba's dragons had given his Red Eyes, he was sure there wouldn't be a repeat of today's surprise.

Funny, how they had a tendency to look, act and even smell like Kaiba at times. Or maybe, Kaiba looked, acted and smelled like his dragons. Either way, it was good. It was the only way he could sleep at night, with the dragons curled around him. He could close his eyes, rest his head against Koori's chest and fall to sleep. It was almost as if Kaiba was there holding him. Almost.

"I don't think they actually hunt the burgers down and kill them in the mortal realm." Lord Kallon handed the plate to E'on. "Why don't you take this to the kitchen and ask them for some food for Jonouchi."

"I don't trust them…" E'on glared suspiciously at the castle. "Who knows what they might try to give him."

The smaller Blue Eyes male snorted and pulled the plate out of E'on's hand. "I'll do it."

"Thank you Shimo." Mr. Kallon smiled and walked over to Jonouchi. "Now, how does my patient feel today?"

Jonouchi, scooted away, his eyes darting around looking for an escape. He couldn't help it. No matter how he tried to tell himself that he was safe, that there was nothing short of an act of god that could harm him with the dragons so near, that the Sage was not the psycho that had hurt him for so long, he couldn't make himself believe it. The fear that had started growing in his stomach was now taking over the rest of him.

"He's much better Lord Kallon." Koori came and sat next to Jo, pulling him gently against his side. The other Blue Eyes pressed against his other side, both protecting him and holding him still. "He's still a bit nervous though."

The Dark Sage nodded and knelt down in front of Jo. "Well, that's very understandable." He slowly raised his hand and reached toward Jonouchi's face. Jo flinched back, feeling Koori's arm circle around his shoulders. The Sage paused. "I would like to look in your eyes, Jonouchi." He waited for a second, then carefully, touched Jo's chin. "Be calm, young one, be calm. No one here will hurt you." He peered intently into Jo's terrified eyes for a moment, turning his head slightly so the sun shifted through them, then let him go. "There all done." He stood up and backed away slowly.

Jo nearly wept with relief. The farther the man stepped away, the more the fear drained out of his body. He curled into Koori's arms, breathing deep, smelling Kaiba's scent, desperately trying to still the tremors that raced through him. The dragon hummed softly and cuddled him on his lap.

"He still needs to rest." The Sage's smooth voice sent small shocks down his back, causing more small shudders to fan through his tense muscles. "Try to get him to eat more and keep him away from the others till he calms down more."

"Yes, Lord Kallon." The Blue Eyes girl got up and stepped away. Jo didn't have to look to know she was taking a guard position at the path, nor did he have to see to know that his own Red Eyes now stood at the other path.

"Has he spoken at all yet?" The Sage's voice was more distant, heading back toward the castle.

"No. Not yet."

Kaiba

Jonouchi's memorial service was well attended. Kaiba was rather shocked over the sheer number of people that flocked to the small funeral parlor. They crammed into all the seats, stood around the edges of the room, flocked in the doorway, crowded into the small vestibule and spilled in pools out the door and into the parking lot.

Many, he admitted were not even acquainted with Jo. They were duelists and fans who came to "be" at the service and maybe get a peek at him, Yami, and Mai. Even poor Ryou, who had only publicly dueled once and had been sent to the hospital for doing it, had been mobbed. Most of the others that attended were from school, classmates and teachers, who seemed more confused and surprised than truly sad. The paparazzi was also well represented as reporters snuck through the crowd, trying to get into the room for pictures of the grieving friends, who clustered in the front of the parlor with Jo's stunned father, complaining mother and distraught sister.

Kaiba had the dubious honor of sitting next to Mrs. Jonouchi and Serenity. The woman had started bitching the moment she stepped out of the limo he'd provided and hadn't paused for breath, yet. Everything displeased her: the limo wasn't good enough; the driver was rude; the small funeral parlor Mr. Jonouchi had insisted on renting with his own money, was decrepit; the flowers that gathered like a small forest around Jo's memorial picture, were tacky; Jo's friends were freaky punks; Kaiba had heard her mutter a few choice words about him being a perverted homo who would burn in hell for molesting her boy. Most of the abuse though, was aimed at Mr. Jonouchi. A ceaseless tirade of short comings, past sins, and vicious speculations of how he had driven Jo to lead a depraved life that led to his death.

Kaiba kept quiet, stayed next to Mrs. Jonouchi in the second row, and repeatedly told himself that he was doing this for Jo. Jo had loved his father, even knowing all the man's faults. He had also loved his mother, knowing all her faults. He wouldn't have been happy with Kaiba tossing his mother out of his memorial service any more than he would have liked Kaiba shifting seats so that her vicious tongue could start slicing into Mr. Jonouchi.

Mr. Jonouchi sat in the other row, staring blindly at the wall behind the memorial display. He was a big, solid man, with more grey hair than Kaiba had remembered. His thick, work hardened hands folded neatly on his lap. The dark blue suit he wore strained across his heavy shoulders and his white shirt and black tie seemed to be chokingly tight around his neck. He didn't seem to care though. He smiled politely when spoken to, managed to say a few words of thanks to people who offered their sympathies, but nothing really seemed to register in his eyes. It was almost as if he had hired someone to take his body to the memorial while the rest of him stayed home.

"Why are we sitting over here? We're back with his friends! We're his family!" Mrs. Jonouchi snapped, staring around the room. "That no good ass. He did this on purpose."

Kaiba mentally ran through a series of equations in his head and thanked the gods that he had sent his little brother to sit next to Yugi.

"How dare he do this to me! To us! Yes, baby, I know, you're as insulted by this as I am." Mrs. Kaiba patted Serenity's knee.

Serenity didn't even acknowledge the touch. She was sitting on the other side of Mrs. Jonouchi, sobbing wildly onto Honda's shoulder. She had managed to get through the crowds, the paparazzi, the endless stream of sympathetic condolences, but had finally collapsed, weeping as soon as she saw Jo's picture smiling at her from it's flower decked easel. While Mrs. Jonouchi complained about the choice of photo, Honda had quietly gathered Serenity up and had retreated to let her cry. She hadn't stopped yet.

Mrs. Jonouchi glared at her ex-husbands back. "I'm his mother! And what is he, except an old drunk?"

Kaiba glanced over at her out of the corner of his eyes. He didn't like where this was going. Jo had told him, back when they were still getting used to the idea of having a relationship together, about his father and mother, all the dirty little secrets, the petty schemes, the nasty truths. He had done it, not because he wanted to smear his parents, but because he had cared. He admired Mr. Jonouchi's ability to love him, even knowing Jo wasn't his real son. He cared that his mother seemed bent on destroying herself and everyone around her. He worried that his little sister was going to follow her mother's path. Jo's ultimate loyalty, his relation with Kaiba aside, had always been to his father. When push had come to shove, the elder Jonouchi had stood next to his son, so his son had stood next to him.

"How dare he shove us back here with…them." She made a motion to get up.

Kaiba blocked her. "Sit down."

"How dare you!" She turned and nearly snarled in his face. "Don't you dare tell me…"

"This is your son's funeral. You should show some respect." Kaiba kept his voice down, making it as soothing and pleasant as was possible under the circumstances. _For Jo, remember, do this for Jo._

"Respect!" She stood and nearly howled at the top of her lungs. "Respect! I'm tossed into the second row with a group of… of friends" she made the word sound like an insult as she waved her hands around, "and you think that I should show some respect?"

Mr. Jonouchi turned and looked over his shoulder as his ex shrieked. His tired eyes blinking into focus, coming back from whatever place he had been in his mind.

"Respect for a… an old drunk? Respect for a bunch of punk kids who got my son killed? Yes! MY SON! Not that… that sodden loser's. He was my son!"

Kaiba could practically hear the hum of the paparazzi's pencils. Mr. Jonouchi frowned back at his ex and shook his head warningly. She sneered back.

"He was my son! You… you were nothing. A jerk. A loser. A pathetic ass who couldn't even keep his cock up for more than five minutes." She tried to get past Kaiba, but he stood and blocked her way. It didn't seem to slow down the woman's ranting. She just looked around Kaiba and continued. "How dare you even show your face here! He was no relation to you. His father was a man, something you will never be! Get out!"

"Shut up." Kaiba hissed at her, catching a glimpse of the flash from a camera. "Sit down and shut the hell up."

"How dare you tell me what to do! It's your fault my son's dead." She tried to slap him, but he caught her hand. "You fucking pervert. You raped my son, then hired some goon to kill him to shut him up so you wouldn't get caught."

Kaiba let her hand go and opened his mouth to snarl a reply, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him. He turned to look into Mr. Jonouchi's eyes.

"Go sit with your friends, son." The man nodded to where Mokuba, Yugi, Yami, Ryou, Mai, Anzu and Duke all sat in various poses of stunned outrage. "She's my problem, been my problem for years. Thank you for trying." He gently steered Kaiba away, then turned to face his former wife.

"Oh, take his side. What, he pay you for Katsuya? Give you a nice sum if you let him fuck MY son and keep quiet?"

The sound of the slap silenced the entire room, even some of the people that had been shifting around in the entry hall became quiet.

"Shut your foul mouth." Mr. Jonouchi's voice was quiet, but in the sudden stillness, it carried through the small hall. "This is Katsuya's funeral. These are his friends, his schoolmates, and his family. A family that he made, not the one you destroyed."

She stood with one hand on her cheek, her eyes wide and furious. "You bastard. You no good, fucking, shithead…" She slapped him back. "Get out. Get out of MY son's funeral" Her voice rose till she was nearly screaming. "Do you hear me? GET THE FUCK OUT!"

Serenity stood up, placing a hand on her mother's arm. "Mom, please. Please. This is Jo's funeral…"

"Shut the fuck up!" Mrs. Jonouchi swung around. "Who the fuck do you think you are to tell me how to behave?"

"Mom, I know you're upset, but please…" Serenity's words were cut off as Mrs. Jonouchi's hand smashed into her face. She stumbled back into Honda, with a shocked cry. Honda gathered her close and pulled her out of the row and over towards their friends.

"Enough." Mr. Jonouchi pulled his ex around to face him. "Hit me all you want, but don't you dare hurt my child."

"Ha you don't have any children. None. You were fucking lucky I let you keep Katsuya, and look what a good job you've done." She motioned around the silent room.

"Sit down and be quiet or I'll have one of the ushers show you out." Mr. Jonouchi motioned for a usher to come forward. While Mr. Jonouchi had insisted on paying for the memorial, Kaiba had been able to convince him to allow his security to act as ushers and crowd control, so the usher that responded to the summons was a bit…larger than normal.

"Throw me out! After all you have done! You should be ashamed to show your pathetic face here." She shoved him back. "YOU get out!"

Mr. Jonouchi shook his head and stepped back. "Please, escort her back to her car. She's a bit… upset."

The bulky man nodded and stepped forward.

"You're throwing me out of my son's memorial?" She stepped back away from the man. "You can't do that. He was MY SON!"

The security man calmly reached over and began herding her toward the door. She snarled, and cursed at him, but couldn't quite work up enough courage to physically resist him.

Half way down the aisle she turned with a jerk and tossed her head up. "Serenity, we're leaving."

"No. You are leaving. Serenity is staying right here." Mr. Jonouchi stood at the front of the aisle with Jo's picture looking over his shoulder. Serenity sat cowering on the seat next to him, hiccupping small sobs into Honda's shoulder. "She will stay and say goodbye to her brother. I'm sorry you cannot find it in your heart to realize the pain you've caused here, but she won't be punished for your bad behavior."

"Serenity. Come here!" The woman tried to turn around, but the usher gently insisted she keep walking toward the exit where people were already parting to let them through.

Serenity didn't move and Mr. Jonouchi sat down next to her and put his arm around her shoulder. The rest of the people in the small hall looked back and forth between the two former spouses, then, as Mrs. Jonouchi was nudged firmly out the door, turned back to the true reason they had gathered.

"Dad, she's going to be so angry…" Serenity whispered.

"Shhh. Don't worry about it sweetheart. I'll take care of it later." Mr. Jonouchi kissed the top of her head.

"But she'll…" Serenity looked back over her shoulder, but she couldn't see her mother through the crowd.

"You can come stay with me. She'll calm down, in time." He gave her another kiss and turned to look around the room. "She never could handle things like this. She's just upset."

"Can I stay? She won't like it. She'll try and…" Serenity glanced around.

Kaiba, now sitting with Mokuba in the seats behind her, leaned forward. "You can stay. I'll make sure of it."

Yami

He was sitting in a window overlooking the courtyard of his palace. Retainers were running around down bellow, helping a dignitary off his skittish horse, while the rare spring rains washed across the yard in blowing sheets of water. His son was sitting in his lap, his small head resting against his shoulder as the little on napped. Behind him, the sound of small stones falling onto wood caught his attention. He turned to look and found himself looking at a young lady with odd golden hair.

"Your turn." She leaned back away from the mancalla board that sat between them. "Unless you want to go out and run through the rain." She looked outside. "I wouldn't blame you."

He shook his head, staring at her. She was probably the most beautiful creature he had seen, but, as he looked at her, he realized that was exactly what she was, a creature. Hanging around her like a invisible mist was the feeling of Shadow Magic. The same magic that swirled in light eddies around the ka beasts that he and the priests could summon, only hundreds of times stronger. However, she also looked, vaguely like… "Yuai?"

All too perfect blue eyes looked questioningly at him. "Yes?"

He stared at her. Someplace in the planes of the inhumanly lovely creature that sat in front of him, the small waif-like girl he knew, peeked back. Maybe, it was in the curve of a cheek, or the slant of her eyes. It was like trying to find familiar features in a blurred photograph.

"It's your move." Her lips tipped up in a small, half hidden laugh.

He looked down at the board, noted the best move and began dropping his stones into the appropriate cups. "Just caught in my own thoughts."

She nodded, looking out the window. "Rainy days seem made for thinking, don't they?"

He nodded, shifting carefully so he wouldn't wake his son, as he reached for a small cup that sat next to his elbow. "Yes, it's easy to get lost in the rain."

She laughed softly and bowed her head back over the game board, "How can you drink that stuff?"

Choking down mouthful of wine, that, again, tasted like a bad science experiment, he wiped the tears out of his eyes. "Test of courage."

She dropped her stones into the cups and looked up at him. "Do you want me to take Ahmose while you go recover from all your manly courage?"

He finished choking, looked down at his still sleeping son, and shook his head. "No, he can sleep through anything."

"Are you two done yet?" A irritated voice grumbled from the doorway.

Yami looked up. The Magician of Black Chaos stood glowering in the door.

"I would like my wife back sometime this week." The Magician growled, looking accusingly at Yuai's back.

She grinned up at Yami. "He's grumpy because he had to sit in court while we visited." She turned and stuck her tongue out at her spouse. "All the gods defend The Realm if he ever needs to hold court more than twice."

Yami reached over and scooped up his stones and deposited them in the cups, as the two continued to bicker quietly. _Ahmose, the moon is born. My son, Ahmose._ The little one snuffled lightly in his sleep, his tiny hands tightening slightly where they rested against his chest.

-000-

A shadow shifted in the back of the now quiet funeral parlor. The scent of flowers lingered softly in the air, as did the more intangible, but far more powerful emotional aura of grief. The shadow grinned to itself, drinking in the bitter taste of other's sadness. _So many, with just one stone. Not just Seto, but I struck at the pharaoh as well. Yes, that was a well played piece._

It drifted down the aisle, tasting the various flavors of the emotions that had been felt, feasting on them, delighting in them. It stopped where Kaiba had sat next to his brother. _I'm not done with you yet. For all the pain, for all the dreams you shattered. You will pay._ A shadowy hand reached out to where Mokuba had sat. _And I know just how to do it._

* * *

authoress looks innocently around What? You expected it to be that simple? BWAHAHAHAHAHA. I haven't even gotten started on the real bad guy yet! Review and let me know how evil I am. After all, I try soo hard.

MM. org

**dragonlady222:** Nope, Yuai is alive and well, if a bit unhappy with her new look. Jo is now all fixed up, but still not at 100 and he now has all sorts of dragons to watch over him. How happy he is with his self appointed body guards….that's a different story.

**Sorceress Sarrkh**: Yes, there will be more Kaiba magic in just a short bit. After all, look where Jonouchi is presently sitting, one way or another if Kaiba wants him back he's going to have to deal with more magic. This story is plotted out to be about 20 chapters, so we are just getting into the middle of the story.

**Daebird**: It's really not safe to assume anything yet. There's still twelve chapters to go and the real bad guy is only now making an appearance on the scene. Bakura's quest for his wandering eye will continue next time, as will the ongoing sage of Captive Passions! Thank you for the praise, it's nice to know that this is keeping everyone entertained.

FF. net

**Hikari Raine:** I hope you're still alive  Yep, that's who she is. I did try to weave a few clues through the trilogy to point in that direction, but I tried to keep it a surprise. I'm glad my little OC has fans!

**Clarity:** Well, here's more Kaiba, but I admit he was sort of in the background while Jo's dad took care of things. Kaiba's due for more a bit more grief, that will actually be to his benefit, so you'll see more of him soon. Hey, look, Jo has all ten fingers! Magic is handy, handy stuff.

**Doomed to Ekko:** I hope your questions have been answered! Jo is, of course, the master of the Red Eyes Black Dragon, though right now, the Blue Eyes will also consider him master, or more accurately, their master's beloved, who had better be treated with absolute respect or else Master will be angry. Thanks for the review, I love your way with words!

**HellsEternalFlame:** Thanks! I love to hear when people enjoy my work. Now that you're here, you can join the chaos… 


	9. Ties

Disclaimer: _Yugi-oh_ is the property of Kazuki.Takahashi, who is a genius. Everything that isn't his or someone else's is mine.

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

**AAN: (Annoyed Author's Note) **While I admit, I am not the world's best author and my stories could use some polish, especially in grammar, I am not responsible for readers' bad reading habits. If you skip things in the story because "It's boring," don't complain if you can't figure out what's going on. Contrary to what you may believe, it is obvious when someone is skipping things, then leaving completely clueless reviews. All I have to do is look at the reviews of people who ARE reading the story, and compare them to the reviews of people who obviously are not reading it. This is a complicated story, with a complicated plot. I put things in the story for a reason, not because I like to waste space. Do all of us both a favor, if you don't like reading a complicated story, don't read it. I am not going to waste anymore space trying to clue in the clueless. End of rant. **To all of you who do read the whole story and review it: I really appreciate all of you. I carefully read all the reviews I get and, in some fashion, do tailor the story for you (not the plot, just the pacing, and sometimes I shift some details to make things clearer if you all sound confused). I consider all your comments, wishes and criticisms, when I write, hoping to become a better writer for all of you. As I have said before, I am writing this not just for me, but for you too, so I do pay close attention to everything that you say. I sincerely thank you for reading my stories and spending a minute or two to review them!**

**Psyche**

Chapter 9: Ties

* * *

**Kaiba**

Kaiba sat at his desk, thanking Yami silently for handing him a set of ear plugs. His new assistant's voice was enough to make is ears want to detach and run. He couldn't fault what she was saying, though. She was easily one of the best assistants that he'd ever had.

The files on the acquisition of a small software firm in Tokyo were meticulous, with all the paperwork needed present, filled out, placed in order and ready for him to review. A dramatic change from having to stalk through the corridors of Kaiba Corp. searching for wandering paperwork, snarling at inept handling of simple forms, or having to decipher the scrawled, often out of order notes that usually were hastily jammed into unlabeled file folders.

The voice though was enough to make him shudder at the thought of what else his little treasure had hired for him. He even, briefly, very briefly, considered reprimanding her, gently. Not that he would ever do that. No. That might give her ideas, encourage her to continue her quest to join the ranks of the employment challenged.

"Should I set up a meeting for the 15th?" The voice pounded into his head.

He made a mental note to buy a better brand of earplugs. "Schedule it with Jame. She'll make all the necessary arrangements."

His new assistant frowned, but got to her feet and glided elegantly out of the room. He sat behind his desk frowning at the door. _Voice lessons. Note to self: Get your new assistant to sign up for voice lessons… Maybe under the guise of … presentations. Yes, she will be needed to give presentations and will need to learn to…project her voice. Not that it doesn't project now. How about saying that she needs to be able to… project in a crowded outdoor setting? Hmmm. _

He whirled around in his chair staring out the window behind him. It was slightly overcast today. The bay was slate grey and the boats that usually skimmed around it, were huddled at the docks. Only the large freighters ploddingly lumbered through the dull waves. Jo would have taken one look at the clouds and cheerfully scampered off to the arcade today, if he was here.

Kaiba shook his head with a sad smile. Odd, it didn't hurt as much now. Somehow, all the frantic worry, the numbing terror, the nearly hopeless desperation were gone. He didn't know how, or why. They were just gone, as if something had snapped, and set him free. In their place was something else, something just as consuming, but cleaner. Grief and love. While they wrapped around him like an old wool coat, they didn't crush him. They didn't destroy or devour. They showed him Jo in a thousand little ways, like bright clear jewels glittering through his mind. They let him treasure those little memories, let him weep for them, but left him his true self.

They also demanded things of him. First, take care of family, and because of Jo, because of the love he had for his lost lover, his family had expanded to take in Jo's tired, worn down father and his wayward sister.

He reached over hand hit the intercom. "Jame, I need legal in my office. Now."

"You have an appointment with R&D in twenty." She sounded a bit miffed.

He grinned, finding small ways to disrupt her carefully organized world was starting to have a certain…appeal. "Reschedule. Get legal here now."

He could almost hear her teeth grind together. "Fine. Right away."

He clicked the intercom off and leaned back in his chair, looking back out at the bay. "You always said I needed a hobby, love." He smiled at the memory of Jonouchi's laughter.

**Ryou**

The game shop was quiet. Most of the after school customers had scampered quickly home, to get out of the muggy, overcast day. A couple of wilting souls had wandered in earlier, drowsily poked around, bought Performance of Sword and dragged themselves back out into the humidity.

Yugi, sitting behind the counter, luxuriating in air conditioned comfort, worried about what his fellow hikari told him. "He won't explain anything?"

"Nothing." Ryou swirled his iced tea around in his glass with a spoon, listening to the soft clink of the ice against the sides of the glass. "He just shows up like… like… that and won't tell me what happened. He's rarely home. He doesn't even watch his soap anymore."

Yugi's eyes widened. "Then he doesn't know about…" He looked furtively around, and leaned across the counter to whisper, "Jessica's baby?"

Ryou shook his head. "We taped it, but he hasn't watched the tape yet." He slumped dispiritedly. "I couldn't even tell him that Tad was sent to a mental ward after speaking with Meredith's ghost."

Yugi shook his head sadly. "That's serious."

"It was the only thing we really bonded over." Ryou's soft, brown eyes teared up. "And he's getting violent again. Yesterday, I got a package in the mail and he yanked it out of my hands, and when I tried to get it back." Ryou flinched. "He started yelling and shoved me into a wall."

"I could talk to Yami…" Yugi worried at his lip.

"No. I don't… He apologized immediately." Ryou shook his head, then looked thoughtful. "Honestly, Yugi, I think he's frightened of something. But what could scare my Yami?"

"I didn't think Bakura could be scared. Well, except for that time Marik swore he'd lock Bakura in a room with Mokuba and a thousand pixie sticks." Yugi grinned slightly at the memory.

Ryou nodded and sipped his tea. "He said something about the Millennium Eye."

"The Eye?" Yugi sat up straighter. "What about the Eye."

"He was in his room, really tearing the place apart and he yelled for me. When I went up he asked if I had seen the Eye. He said he lost it." Ryou looked away.

Yugi looked at him shocked. "He had the Eye?"

"I guess so." Ryou studied his iced tea intently. "He was really upset and told me that I had to stay away from it, that it was dangerous."

Yugi nodded. "From what Yami told me, it is. It belonged to his uncle and he said that it drove his uncle crazy."

Ryou sipped more of his tea. "Bakura went to talk to Pegasus about it and when he got back he started going out late… Do you think, maybe, the Eye is doing something to him?"

Yugi looked off into the distance for a few moments, then shook his head. "No. Yami says no. Bakura is bound to the Ring, so the Eye can't really do too much to him on it's own. It would need to have someone holding it to even affect Bakura a little bit, and even then it would only be able to read his mind or send him to the Shadow Realm."

Ryou sighed in relief. "Well, that's good to know. He doesn't really have that much on his mind worth reading, and he **likes** the Shadow Realm."

"So the question is, what is he worried about?" Yugi leaned against the counter, propping his chin on his hand. "What could the Eye really do?"

Feeling a bit better, Ryou shrugged. "Ask Yami."

Yugi shook his head. "He won't say. When I asked him about what the Eye could do to Bakura, there was a feeling, like he didn't really want to talk to me about something."

"Oh, one of those things." Ryou set his tea on the counter.

"Yeah, one of those I'm-A-Yami-And-I-Have-To-Protect-My-Fragile-Hikari things." Yugi snorted "This from the guy who freaked over finding himself wearing a paper dress in a doctors office."

Ryou snickered, "I still like to watch that…"

He was interrupted by the phone ringing. Yugi shook his head, held up one finger to tell Ryou it would only take a moment, and picked up the receiver. "Kame Game Shop, how… Oh, Kaiba, how are…No, I …" Yugi looked alarmed. "I'll tell Yami. Can you… okay." He hung up the phone, looking bewildered.

Ryou reached out and touched his arm. "Yugi? What…"

"Mokuba, he's missing."

**Yami**

_Why am I not surprised the Thief had the Eye? I swear to Ra, he's like being around a sticky fingered kid in a candy shop._ Yami scowled at where the white haired thief, who was sprawled lazily across the sofa in Ryou's apartment.

"… the roach hit me in the face and I couldn't see anything." Bakura waved his long fingered, tanned hand around dramatically.

While it was fascinating to hear about the lifestyles of the weird and depressed, Yami was more worried about what the thief was leaving out. Mainly, the entire part about why he was roaming around the gloomiest parts of Domino City. If the Eye was missing, then someone, someplace, might fall victim to it, and with all the chaos that they were presently dealing with, having another crazed loony like Pegasus, just didn't appeal. However, they really didn't have time to go hunt the thing down.

"…that's when I realized that I had my old body back."

Marik looked up from where he was sitting on the floor, leaning back against the couch, snorted. "I thought you were cuter before."

"You can't believe how relieved I am to hear that." Bakura flicked Marik's ear. "Maybe now you can go back to ogling your hikari."

"But you were so fun to ogle." Marik grinned sadistically. "The way you blushed. The way you threatened my life." He wiped away a fake tear. "You were just so adorable."

"Go fuck yourself with a axe." Bakura snarled lazily.

"Perverted sex life aside," Yami pulled himself up from lolling in an overstuffed armchair. "We need to go up to where Jonouchi was killed and investigate the area soon."

Marik nodded. "I can probably head up there tonight, but who'll stay and watch our lights?"

Bakura yawned. "I'll stay. I still have a bit of searching to do here."

"For the Eye." Yami watched as Bakura made an almost unnoticeable jump.

"How…" Bakura glared at the pharaoh.

"You've been worrying Ryou, so he went to Yugi, who asked me about what the Eye could do." Yami got to his feet. "Look for the Eye later. We're busy enough as it is."

Bakura narrowed his eyes. "Get your head out of your ass pharaoh. I'm betting the Eye is our present troubles."

"What the fuck would…" Yami growled, prowling toward the thief.

Marik, eyeing the two other yamis, grinned happily, scooped up a bowl of popcorn that had been sitting on the coffee table and retreated to the sidelines to watch the show.

"Pegasus." Bakura stood up. "If what he said is true, the Eye might be self aware and a Millennium Item that can think for itself is not something that I want roving around."

"The attacks have focused mainly on Kaiba." Yami stopped, still glaring, but also tipping his head thoughtfully as Bakura continued. "And who did Pegasus target last time? Sure, dear, old Grandpa got his soul sucked out, but let's really take a look. The whole attack centered around Kaiba. Pegs was after Kaiba Corp., he tried to kill Kaiba, he sealed Mokuba's soul into a card and taunted Kaiba with his brother's soulless body, then he took Kaiba's soul. Ego deflating as it is, you and Gramps were nothing more than a sick diversion, while he was taking apart Kaiba's life."

"True. The Eye needs a wielder, though. No matter if it can think for itself or not, it can't do much without someone to work through." Yami still looked at Bakura, but his eyes were lost in thought.

"Yeah, that's where my whole theory falls apart. The thing was locked away, and believe me, no thief in this era could have taken it. I can't figure out where it went or how it went there." Bakura eyed the pharaoh warily, but the other seemed still lost in his own mind.

Marik, seeing his entertainment sputter and die, chomped a mouthful of popcorn. "If it can think for itself, could it have the ability to move by itself?"

"How roll itself out of the locked box? Roll down the stairs, sneak past me and Ryou and roll out the door." The white haired yami shook his head. "I can just see it now, rolling merrily down the sidewalk, plotting to destroy Kaiba's life. Maybe it stopped at Starbucks and had a Mochachino while it called a group of whacked out assassins on it's cell phone."

"Sarcasm," Marik sighed dramatically, "you were cuter when you were sarcastic in the other body. I just loved that little sneer you'd get on those sweet little lips of yours."

"I wonder what would happen if we gelded you with your own Rod." Bakura thumped back down onto the sofa.

Yami pulled himself out of his musings. "So the Eye is after Kaiba."

"Nice that you agree with me." Bakura smirked.

Yami shrugged, "You occasionally say something intelligent. Remind me to write this down someplace. I've been keeping track." He sat back down in the armchair. "You used to say something smart about once a week, you've slipped lately to once every three months. I think your brain's decaying."

"Gee, feel the love." Marik chomped more popcorn.

"Alright, then Bakura stays here and keeps an eye on the lights and searches for the Millennium Eye. Marik and I will go up to the cabin and see what we find up there." Yami nodded thoughtfully. "If Kaiba is being targeted by the Eye, then we should probably watch him and Mokuba too."

"Humph. He's not our responsibility." Bakura grabbed the bowl from Marik and took a handful of popcorn. "Let him get his own yami."

Yami shook his head. Something was nagging at him, a feeling. "I'd rather not have to deal with Seth. How did Anzu once put this, reverse PMS? Only nice one week a month."

_YAMI!_ The mental yell was loud enough to tumble him off his chair._ Yami, you have to come home! They have Mokuba!_

Marik, glowering over the loss of his treat, watched as the pharaoh hit the floor and the thief winced, holding his head. Retrieving his bowl, he started tossing one fluffy kernel into his mouth at a time as the two other yamis, with pained looks on their faces, stared off into space. _That's what happens when you don't tell your hikari to use a phone. Great things cell phones. You can give one to your light, get great sex for doing it, and never have to worry about sudden nagging headaches._

"Well, so much for keeping an eye on the little Kaiba." Bakura rubbed his temples.

"Marik, come on. We've got to get to the store." Yami wobbled to his feet.

"Why should I?" Marik clutched his popcorn, and pouted. It wasn't that he really felt like pouting like a stupid child, but he loved the look on the pharaoh's face when he did something like this. It was almost as priceless as flirting with Bakura. The two older yamis really needed to lighten up.

Bakura grabbed him and hauled him towards the door. "You get to be babysitter, while we big people go track down that damn Eye."

**Kaiba**

_I can't let them take Mokie. I won't have anything. Jo's gone, my parents are gone, even Yuai is missing, and now Mokie. I can't let them take him. It's my fault, if anything happens to him, it's my fault. I can't let them hurt him, when I'm the one who should be hurt. Oh, gods, it's all my fault. I'm sorry Jo. I'm sorry Mokie. I'll get you back. I can't let them have you. They can have me, but I can't let them take you away._ His mind chased itself around and around, as Kaiba watched the world outside the limo windows slip past. He'd be at the game shop soon. He just had to hold on for a few more minutes. Then he'd surrender. He gave up. It was over. He'd roll over like the pathetic fool he was, and let Yami take over and save his worthless hide…again. He was just so tired.

He had actually had the nerve to think that nothing more could happen. That with Jo's death, all the troubles that had been chasing him around for months were finished. He had honestly, and arrogantly, believed that he once again had control of his life. There would be no more Shadow Magic nonsense. He could go back to work and deal with the controlled insanity that passed for Kaiba Corp.. He could rebuild what pathetic shards of his life still remained and deal with whatever future was still open to him.

It had taken less then three minutes for that naïve illusion to be blown to pieces. Kado's voice, sounding as close to panic as he'd ever heard it, had yanked him back to reality. In three minutes, Kado had told him about the armed man, who had blasted his way through Mokuba's school, killed three of the body guards that had been assigned to his brother, shot two school security guards, murdered the teacher, and grabbed his brother. The only good to come out of this mess was that the one surviving body guard had doggedly followed the kidnapper. Once he found Yami, he could turn the mess over to him, before he, in his moronic, inept arrogance, managed to kill the only thing left in his life that kept him from taking the express way down from Kaiba Corp.'s roof.

The limo slowed to a stop in front of the game shop. The sign on the door had been flipped to closed, but he could see a group of people moving around inside. As the driver opened the door, Kaiba dragged himself out of his seat. It wouldn't be long now, just a few more steps and it would be over. He stepped out of the limo, nodded absently to the driver and walked toward the door. He didn't even have time to lift his hand to knock before Yugi opened the door and crushed him into a hug.

"Kaiba! We've been so worried. Hurry and get inside. We're all here." The little light was nearly crying into his shirt.

Kaiba nodded mutely and let Yugi haul him inside, just to be nearly decked by a weeping Ryou.

"Are you okay? We tried to call your cell, but you didn't answer." Tears leaked down Ryou's face. "Bakura and Yami are getting ready. Here, wear this." He pulled out what looked to be a shoestring necklace with the toe of a sock tied on the end. "It's supposed to protect you from Shadow Magic."

Kaiba let him put the thing on. He didn't care. If wearing the toe of a sock was what Yami wanted him to do, he'd do it. It wasn't like he'd come up with any great ideas. "Thanks."

Malik came down the stairs, and some corner of Kaiba's mind silently gave thanks that the third hikari didn't hug him and cry on his shirt. The violet eyed blond did look anxiously at the CEO, but seemed more interested in scooping up a small pile of origami paper that sat on the counter. "They're almost done. Since Kaiba's here, we need to all go upstairs. They only placed the wards around the apartment."

Ryou, still wrapped around Kaiba, nodded soggily. "Okay." He looked up at Kaiba, giving him one more quick squeeze before letting him go. "Don't worry. Our yamis aren't going to let anyone hurt Mokuba."

Kaiba refrained from saying that they hadn't managed to save Jo from months of torture or being tossed into a river and killed. How could he, when he was the one who had been so arrogantly sure he could save Jo all by himself? How could he? Maybe if he had just turned the whole mess over the Yami the second Jo disappeared, if he'd handed Yami all the information that his detectives had gathered, if he'd swallowed his damn pride and begged for the pharaoh to help him search, maybe Jo would be home right now, and Mokie would be at school pretending to listen to the history teacher drone on about _The Tale of Genji_.

"Ready?" Bakura strode down the stairs, his blue eyes still gleaming from residual magic.

Kaiba nodded, "The limo's out side." Yugi and Ryou scampered up the stairs, as Yami came down to stand next to Bakura. Kaiba bowed his head, looking down at his shoes, not finding it in himself to meet the ancient spirit's eyes. "What do you want me to do?"

"We'll know when we get there." Yami walked across the shop and pulled open the door. "Let's go. The sooner we get Mokuba back, the sooner this whole nightmare will be over. Do you know where he's been taken?"

"Yes, the guard is still tailing them. It's a house over on the east side of the city, near the old shrine." Kaiba dully followed the two yamis out the door, wondering if he should even go along. He didn't have the best track record for these rescues. Whenever he tried, the situation got worse and someone either had to save his useless ass or wound up dead.

The two spirits, however, seemed to take it for granted that he'd be coming, so he followed after them into the limo. As they spent the trip speaking to each other in stings of rapid Egyptian, that some linguist or Egyptologist would merrily kill to hear, he kept his mouth shut and waited for them to tell him what he needed to do. He was distantly interested in noting he could understand a few words here and there. He couldn't quite grasp the whole conversation, but what he could understand was either about someone's red kitten being folded, or someone's eye had run away. Since neither really made sense to him, he went back to watching out the window, letting their voices wash over him.

The neighborhood was a small twisty street that wound up the side of steep hill. High walls surrounded the houses, enclosing small gardens and presenting the street with grim, grey concrete walls. The houses, for the main part were one story buildings, with large front windows that faced into their private gardens, and flat rooftops. A few twisted, ornamental trees peeked over the tops of the stern walls as if waving frantically for help.

A block away from their destination, Mokuba's surviving body guard, sat in his car keeping a careful surveillance of the house. As they pulled up behind him and got out, he walked over to the limo.

"There's been no activity since my last report, Mr. Kaiba. Everything looks quiet." The man glanced appraisingly at the two spirits, then shifted his attention back to his employer. "No one has entered or left the property."

Kaiba nodded, and turned to see if Yami had anything for him to do yet.

"I'll go take a look." Bakura slipped off down a small alley and disappeared with amazing suddenness.

Yami nodded absently as he looked at the walls that surrounded the house. "You only saw one man?"

The guard nodded, "Yes. I couldn't see if there was anyone in the house when they arrived, but there was only one man with Mokuba in the get away vehicle."

Yami pursed his lips thoughtfully together. "We'll wait to see what Bakura finds."

Kaiba shifted impatiently, then quieted himself. It wasn't his decision. It was Yami's and if the ancient spirit said to wait, he'd have to wait.

He bowed his head and looked down at the sidewalk. Surrender. He'd fought it for so long, but now that he'd laid down his defenses and given up, it was almost peaceful. He didn't have to fight, or struggle, or desperately cobble together a plan. He could just wait, till someone better suited for these situations thought the whole thing over and told him what he needed to do.

Yami looked over at him. "You've been quiet."

Kaiba looked up at him, questioningly, but kept his mouth shut. He'd have to practice that. It would be easy for him to say something sarcastic, something arrogant. For far too long, his own mouth had alienated everyone around him, and he couldn't risk it driving away the one person that could save Mokuba, so he stayed quiet, wondering why Yami made the comment.

Yami carefully studied Kaiba's eyes. He didn't like the look in them. Jo had once said all you needed to know about Kaiba was in his eyes. His soul was reflected there, and if you looked, you could see everything the brunette tried to keep hidden. Right now, they were a dead, dull blue, the color of frost burnt ground in the heart of winter. _Too much, too quick. He had no time to recover from having his mind ripped open from the shadow spell, then Jo died, and now this. I wonder if he's even sane anymore._ "Tomorrow, you and Mokuba should take a vacation."

Kaiba nodded and returned to his inspection of the sidewalk. Tomorrow was tomorrow. He'd have to get through today first. Still, if that's what the spirit thought he should do, he'd look into it. He idly let his mind wander through the possible places to go, not really paying much attention when Bakura slithered back to them, brushing a stray leaf out of his white hair.

"Just the two of them." The thief nodded over his shoulder. "Should be easy enough. The kid's in the back room and the twit's in the front." He made a disgusted sound in his throat. "There's even a window open at the back. With a small diversion, we can snatch the kid and be out before the moron figures out that we're there."

"Any sign of the Eye?" Yami tapped his fingers thoughtfully on the roof of the limo.

"I didn't get close enough to the twit to check." Bakura shook his head.

"Fine." Yami motioned to the guard, "You will be the diversion. Give us five minutes, then go to the front of the house and pretend to sneak around. Make sure he can see you." The guard nodded as Yami continued. "Bakura, try to find the Eye, and if we need more distraction, be distracting." Bakura flowed away like a liquid shadow, as Yami turned to Kaiba. "We get Mokuba."

Kaiba nodded and followed as Yami slipped down the alley, trotted down a tiny back street, where a small brown cat glared at them from behind a pile of dead tree limbs, and stopped behind a wall. Yami lightly leaped to the top and waved Kaiba to come join him. He didn't manage it with Yami's effortless grace, but he managed to haul himself up.

The house was a square, light green building made of concrete, with two white rimmed windows facing toward them. A carefully mowed lawn with a couple of stunted bushes stretched between the wall and the house. To one side a cracked concrete walk marched down the side of the house and the other was lost in a tangle of an old gardenia bush.

"There's the window." Yami whispered into his ear, pointing to the window on the right. "It's time for the distraction to begin. Let's get over there and get to Mokuba. You go in and get him. I'll be keeping watch outside. If anything goes wrong, get as close to the window as possible and I'll deal with the rest."

Kaiba nodded and whispered back. "If something goes wrong, take care of Mokuba. I'll worry about myself."

"Kaiba…" Yami started, but Kaiba shook his head.

"This is the only thing I ask. Take care of my brother." Kaiba jumped down from the wall before Yami could answer him.

He could hear the spirit hiss at his back. "Fine…stubborn…"

They quickly darted across the yard to the window and checked inside. The room was empty, except for Mokuba, who was irritably picking at a handcuff that shackled him to a rather rickety looking metal cot. It appeared that the kid had nearly dismantled the headboard the cuffs were looped through and was trying to work the cuffs' chain between the gap he'd created in the bars. Kaiba smiled to himself. Not bad, considering his brother's hands were cuffed behind his back.

"Come on, come on." The black haired boy whispered to himself, glancing occasionally at the door. The man had dragged him in here an hour ago and hadn't come back since. A small squeak from the window caught his attention and he looked over in time to see his brother slip through the window. Yami peeked in after him, winked, then disappeared. "Seto!"

His brother put his finger to his lips, silencing him, then looked quickly out the door before coming over and giving him a quick hug. "I'll get you free, then we go out the window." He whispered, pulling the bed frame farther apart, allowing the cuffs to slip free.

Mokuba nodded, and quickly scampered to the window. He paused as a sudden gunshot rang through the house. The man in the front started yelling, then more gunshots.

Kaiba shoved Mokuba from behind and hustled him toward the window. "The guard is out front distracting him."

Mokuba shivered, but Kaiba scooped the child up and tossed him out the window as more gunshots and running feet approached the room. "Yami, get him out of here!"

"Kaiba!"

"No, big brother!"

"I'll be fine. I can get out the other way. Go!"

As the man dove into the room, Kaiba ducked to the side, trying to get out of the direct line of fire. The man turned to him, grinned, winked and aimed a few shots out the window. Through the now shattered glass, he could see the pharaoh and his brother disappear over the wall.

"Hello, Kaiba. I was expecting you." The man smiled happily at him, lazily waving the gun around. "I really expected you to be by yourself, but, hey, this works. I've got a message for you, "Enjoy hell."

**-00-**

Bakura slipped out the kitchen window as the first shots rang. He'd taken one look around at what was pinned to the walls and decided that he could look for the damn Eye later. He was up, over the wall and jogging quickly towards the limo, absently noting the limping guard that seemed to be leaving a trail of blood behind him. A moment later the pharaoh raced around the corner dragging Mokuba with him.

"We have to go back! Big brother is still in there!" The kid was writhing and twisting in Yami's grip.

Bakura turned to look over his shoulder at the house. "Kaiba's still in there. Shit!"

"I'm sure he can take care of himself." Yami pulled Mokuba over to the thief. "Can you take the cuffs off?"

"Fuck the cuffs, we've got to get the hell out of here." Bakura grabbed the staggering guard and shoved him into the limo.

"We'll wait for…" Yami scowled.

"That house was wired with enough explosive to level this block. Shit. Kaiba had better be out of there and taking shelter." The white haired yami snarled grabbing Mokuba and shoving him toward the limo.

For a half second, there was a sudden, terrible silence, then a wave of sound, force, heat and magic slammed through the neighborhood. Bakura was flung forward onto Mokuba, both flattened to the ground by the blast. Yami was thrown back against a wall, cracking the back of his head against it with enough force to black out the world.

Then it was gone. Bakura picked himself up, still shaken. He wasn't sure if the physical blast or the magical one had been worse. He liked to say that he was darkness incarnate, but the wave of foulness that had crashed him to the ground was far darker than he was. Compared to that, he felt as light and innocent as Ryou.

Mokuba rolled over, still partially stunned, and looked back at the flaming wreck that had been a house a few seconds before. "Big brother…"

**Shadow Realm**

Kaiba opened his eyes and looked around at the shifting shadows that surrounded him. He didn't bother trying to get up. He sighed and closed his eyes. The Shadow Realm. Yami said he needed a vacation and, though he would have like a nicer place, with Mokuba, he was content enough. His brother was safe and that was all he had wanted. He could stay here and sleep.

"Master Seto?" A soft polite voice interrupted his downward slide into unconsciousness.

He opened his eyes and found himself looking into the gem blue eyes of a young white haired man. He blinked wondering if, when the wacko banished him to the Shadow Realm, if he'd hit his head, or maybe he was hallucinating again.

"Master Seto?" The young man bowed respectfully to him. "I am Koori. If you would permit, I would like to take you to Master Jonouchi. I think he would be happy to see you."

* * *

See, no evil cliffie! I'm so proud of myself. Now you can all stop worrying about Mokuba and take a breather. If you look carefully, the bad guy never said he was going to hurt Mokie. 

**MediaMiner**

**dragonlady222: **You'll have to be patient. The gang is no place near finding out who's doing all this, though they are at least nosing around in the right direction. Thanks for the great reviews!

**Daebird: **I have seriously considered writing Captive Passions out, but considering how slowly I'm writing this, I'll have to place it after the long string of other fics I want to do first. I've read a few stories that have the Shadow Realm monsters with personalities. I personally like the one with The Magician of Black Chaos running a pet sitting service. It was never completed, but it was hilarious.

**Velvetina:** Welcome back! All I can say is I'm twisted. I look at a nice simple plot, then I start picking at it and before long it's a twisted, strange thing that should probably be shoved in a cage and fed raw meat.

**FanFiction**

**Doomed to Ekko:** _authoress mutters about stupid spellcheckers messing up people's names, then jumps guiltily_ There, there, I never meant to harm Mokie. He's really far to cute to do nasty things to._authoress wipes off flaming lard and flicks it at a passing Anzu Basher._ Jo refers to Kaiba as Kaiba because he thinks it's fitting. Kaiba, as nearly everyone who reads YYO fics knows, means seahorse. In Japanese myth, a seahorse is a baby dragon. Since I don't really see Kaiba allowing even Jo to wander around calling him "baby dragon" in public, Jo says Kaiba. When he's very serious, he'll call Kaiba, Seto. If I ever find time to do the prequel to this trilogy, I'll explain all this there.

**Clarity:** Mokie's all safe and sound, maybe has a minor bruise or two, but otherwise he's okay. Also, most of the angst is done, Mokie is going to have a few moments, but then it's all bad guy hunting.


	10. Reunions

AN: Due to a rather irritating case of carpel tunnel syndrome (Gee, thanks Doc! Gee thanks nasty keyboard!), I have to cut back on my typing. I can no longer spend all week merrily plotting, scheming, and typing. I have to be a good, little writer and scale things back dramatically. I will be trying to get the next installments out the first week of each month. I might try and sneak a chapter in sooner, if I don't have any homework that needs typing, but that will be extra-specially rare. To compensate, I'll try not to leave too many nasty cliffies, so you won't all suffer.

**Psyche**

Chapter 10: Reunions

* * *

**Kaiba**

It was beyond even his dreams. The wide magnificent sweep of pinions, the heady rush of air racing past his ears and burning into his eyes, the awesome flex and pull of muscle that moved beneath his body, were all impossible for even his mind to have imagined. Kaiba lay across Koori's shoulders, safely tucked against one of the armored ridges that marched down his dragon's spine, and laughed in pure joy. His dragon. HIS DRAGON. This was one of his Blue Eyes.

Once he had dragged his semi-conscious self off the ground, to stand weaving unsteadily in front of the white haired, blue eyed young man, that had so tantalizingly promised to take him to Jonouchi, Koori had transformed into a creature from his earliest childhood dreams. _The cards should be burned. They're an insult to my Blue Eyes. Koori is a hundred times more beautiful than the pictures._

_Don't do that, Master. If you did, we would never be able to see you._ Koori's voice whispered softly through his mind.

_They make you look short, fat and rather silly._ Kaiba smiled, laying his cheek against the dragon's warm scales.

_At least I'm not purple._ The voice laughed back._ Just wait till you hear Mahaddo talk about his hair._

Kaiba closed his eyes, enjoying the rhythmic boom of the dragons wings as it navigated through the air. When he'd designed the Blue Eyes Jet, –_Have to redo that. The wings, neck and tail need to be modified.- _he'd guessed dragons spent most of their time gliding. He'd been mostly right, the only time Koori really used his wings was for take off and adjusting his position in flight. He'd been wrong in thinking that it was because the dragon's weight would make bird like flight impractical. He hadn't taken into consideration one huge factor, dragons had magic. Why should a dragon expend so much energy flapping it's wings when a small dab of magic smoothed things over so easily? Why leap into the air awkwardly flapping your wings and straining when a quick flick of magic could send you whooshing into the sky like a piece of dandelion fluff in a high breeze?

_Are you hungry, Master?_ The dragon whispered very quietly, as if afraid to disturb him.

_No._ Kaiba opened his eyes and looked down as the land flashed past in a colorful blur. _You said you would take me to Jo._

_Yes, Master. Master Jonouchi will be very, very happy to see you._ The dragon banked and shifted their course as they reached a stretch of water that spread in glistening green blue waves as far as Kaiba could see.

_How did Jo get here? I thought…_Kaiba couldn't completely block the surge of pain that accompanied that thought. His mind sadistically replaying the bloody scene by the river._ I thought he was dead._

_Lady Yuai had him brought here._ The dragon settled back into a steady glide, heading along the crescent sweep of bank bordering the water.

_Yuai?_ Kaiba frowned. When the slender girl had disappeared, he'd been too devastated by Jo's death to do much more than ask Kado to find his wandering nanny. In the press of funeral arrangements, devastated younger brothers, lonely mind numbing grief, and trying to pull together the shattered ruins of his life, the loss of a small, quiet girl had gone mostly unnoticed. Even Yugi, her boyfriend, had done little more than ask if he'd seen her and to tell her to visit when she got back. _What the hell is Yuai doing in the Shadow Realm? Did some sicko trap her here?_

The dragon seemed puzzled. _Why shouldn't she be here? Look, there!_

Kaiba looked towards where his dragon was nodding. Far in the distance, but rapidly approaching was a city. He couldn't make out the details yet, but it looked big and green, with a large, glittery structure on top of some kind of hill.

_That's the capital city. The others and Master Jonouchi are there._ The dragon swept downward, loosing altitude in a playful diving arc. The city quickly loomed closer as Koori flattened into a neat skimming flight pattern. _Shimo says that they will meet us in the court yard, then we will take you to Master Jonouchi._

The city was now rushing below them, as they approached a tall white castle on a cliff. _Calcite, dear Ra, a castle made entirely of carved calcite. How the hell did they manage that?_ He barely managed to comprehend that when Koori smoothly back winged to a graceful halt in the castle's courtyard, scattering a group of over dressed people and what looked like a rather harried Witty Phantom. The only two that didn't seem to be bothered by the playful sweep of Koori's wings were two slender white haired figures, who's blue eyes gleamed happily as they raced forward to greet him.

**Jame**

She peeked around the door and quickly retreated back into her office. Mokuba was still sitting at Kaiba's desk, with his head pillowed on his arms, sobbing his heart out. He'd done beautifully all morning as he took control of Kaiba Corp. He'd met with the board, visited all the departments, sat through at least two meetings that were whipped together at the last minute for the unspoken purpose of seeing if various people could intimidate the young kid, and proven beyond even a whisper of doubt that he was indeed a Kaiba.

Jame squirmed in her seat as she listened to the half muffled crying. She somehow managed to do what the others hadn't been able to. She made the grim, icy eyed, stoic boy cry. All she had done was ask him to review a couple of files that needed to be signed by the end of the week. She'd thought she was being nice. She thought the kid might need a break from dealing with the vultures that had flapped into the office to see if they could tear off a tasty bit of Kaiba's heir, so she put the files on Kaiba's desk and shooed the new CEO in to the office for a moment of quiet. She had then slipped out, hoping to find some tea or a soda for him, and when she got back, the young, somber executive was gone and a small, grieving child had taken his place.

_I'm not good with kids!_ Jame cringed in her chair._ What the hell am I supposed to do? Go in and say cheer up kid, so your big brother's dead and you're an orphan. It'll be alright. Oh by the way, did Child Welfare Services call yet to put you in a foster home? Multi-billionaire CEO or not, you're still eleven and you've got be have a legal guardian to make sure you eat a balanced meal?_

She shook her head and turned as someone knocked at her door. Blond Bunny Version 2.0 stood in the door looking uncertain. Jame smiled, got up, and quietly closed the door that connected her office to Kaiba's, hoping to give Mokuba some privacy. "Hi, what's up?" Jame inwardly cringed. She'd started using slang around the office as a way of irking Kaiba. She took a deep breath. "Can I help you with anything?"

"Some of the employees were wondering if there was going to be a memorial or something for Mr. Kaiba." Version 2.0's large, doe like eyes strayed to the now closed door.

Jame mentally translated the remark. _Some of the employees, namely you, were wondering if they could get a bit more gossip by coming up here and nosing into Mokuba Kaiba's office. Hope you got a earful of the kid crying over his dead brother to take back to the secretarial pool._ Jame pursed her lips and shook her head. "I believe that Mr. Kaiba is still making arrangements. I'll let you know when it is going to be held."

2.0 sighed and nodded, "All right, but let me know if there is anything that I can do to…" She trailed off, waving a helpless hand towards the door.

"Of course. Is there anything else?" Jame sat back down at her desk, watching 2.0 bite her lip nervously.

"Well, there is one thing." The blond tugged at the corner of her lapel, then glanced over to the closed door again. "We were wondering if there was going to be any…changes in the executive assistants?"

_Ah, all bow to the gods of job security. So it wasn't about gossip, or at least not entirely._ Jame shook her head. "I know of no planed changes."

2.0 nodded, "Well, okay. If he needs anything, anything at all, let me know." She looked sadly at the door. "Poor kid, it must have been so hard on him."

Jame kept her professional smile firmly tacked in place. "Yes, I suppose it was. Is there anything else?"

"No." The blond wiggled seductively out the door with a small wave. "I'll stop by later to see if he needs anything."

_Note to self. Lock the door and get another, less gossipy assistant._ Jame suddenly had a image of Mokuba reaching the tender years when his hormones would temporarily shut down his brain, and him facing Version 2.0 every day. _What a pleasant thought. Mrs. Mokuba Kaiba Version 2.O. His brother will rise from his grave -or memorial, or whatever you have for someone blown to bits by a few hundred pounds of plastic explosive- and hunt me down. He'd probably haunt Mokuba's sleep and tell him to keep me employed till I die of old age._ Jame shivered. _Time to restructure the executive assistants again._

With a martyred sigh, Jame started her list of thing that would need to be done to make Mokuba's life a lot easier.

**Jonouchi**

Jonouchi missed the dragons. He'd gotten used to Koori's solid, comforting presence; Shimo's sly humor, and the girl's gentle comfort, but now all three where off someplace and he was alone with E'on. Koori had disappeared just after breakfast, then a few hours later the other two had darted away, leaving him to the over eager care of his Red Eyes.

"I really don't see why we can't." E'on was poking a Rainbow Flower that Yuai had sent to him with a note saying 'Get Well Soon, or I'll feed you to the flower.' He had been startled at first, then silently laughed. The poor plant looked more wasted then vicious and had an odd habit of crooning what sounded like old protest songs from the 1960's. The pot was a bit creepy, but he found that if you fed it leftover bits of toast it would stop gnashing it's teeth and hum counter point to the flower's song, then take a nap. He was actually getting fond of it. It was the closest thing he'd come to having a radio since he'd gotten here.

"Really, have you heard of anyone saying we couldn't go swimming in the moat?" E'on, finally getting the strung out flower to sing something that sounded like _Blowing in the Wind_, settled into a chair by the window.

Jonouchi eyed the dragon warily. No, no one had said anything about swimming in the moat. Considering what he'd glimpsed living there, he wasn't terribly surprised. Splashing around with a group of homicidal Great Whites didn't seem like an activity that needed a too much discussion. He shook his head and pointed toward the garden.

"But the others aren't here." The Red Eyes pouted. "It would be much safer if we went swimming."

"In the moat?" Yuai stepped into the room, eyeing the dragon teen. "I don't suppose you've noted that Jo doesn't have a nice hide of dragon skin?" She paused, looking pointedly at E'on. "Yet."

"Hey, I'd keep him safe." E'on looked offended.

Yuai shook her head. "Forget it E'on." She smiled happily at Jonouchi. "Jo, there's someone here who wants to see you."

Jonouchi startled back and E'on placed himself protectively in front of his master. Yuai laughed, and motioned for someone behind her to come forward as she stepped aside. Jonouchi tensed, then felt his eyes widen as Kaiba stepped into the room, with his three dragons trailing after him.

Jo stood there stunned. His love looked a bit worn, more than bit tired, and a lot rumpled, but he was there, standing in the doorway looking uncertain. Jo pinched himself. He'd always heard that was how to prove you weren't dreaming. The small tingle of pain assured him he was awake. Was it a trick? He looked at the nearly beaming Yuai, and the three Blue Eyes that stood proudly behind their master.

"Jo?" Kaiba barely whispered his name, bowing his head. "I'm sorry Jo. I don't blame you if you don't want to ever see me…"

Jonouchi yanked himself out of his stupor and flung himself into Kaiba's arms, cutting off his lover with a frantic kiss. _Oh, thank Hathor and Maat and Ra and Isis and Horus and even Set. Thank all the gods. You're HERE!_ He wrapped his arms around his love, noting that Kaiba had lost weight and feeling a surge of protective anger, and did his best to put all the love, fear, longing, and joy he felt into the kiss. He could feel Kaiba hesitate, feel the tension vibrating through his body, then he felt it break and was wrapped tightly in his lover's arms, as the kiss was returned.

When they finally parted, Kaiba still held him close and whispered brokenly. "Oh Gods, I've missed you."

Jo stroked his cheek with his finger tips, smiling.

Kaiba caught his hand, looking startled. "Jo, your fingers. You have all your..." He shivered and buried his face against the blonde's neck. "I thought it was your finger. That man, he mailed me a finger and I thought it was yours."

Jonouchi could feel soft tears against his skin and he wrapped his arms around his love's shoulders and nuzzled soft kisses against his ear. The small protective spark of anger flared brighter. How dare anyone do this to Kaiba. How dare anyone make his graceful, egotistical beloved shiver and cry. This was his love that someone had messed with and he'd make that someone pay. He wondered if the psycho was still alive. Five minutes ago, he had lived with the fervent wish that the wacko was dead, now he wanted him alive. _Rag on me all you like. But no one touches him!_

"Well, actually it was…" E'on started uncertainly, and was instantly silenced by the three Blue Eyes glaring at him. The little dragon cringed. "… a logical mistake."

Yuai shooed him and the others out the door. "Jo, I'm leaving you in charge of him." She grinned, looking a lot like her mortal self in that instant, pausing as she closed the door behind her. "You know how he is. Make him sleep and drag him down to dinner. There's no way he's going to any office, anytime soon, and he's defiantly not working late tonight on the computer, so don't take any nonsense from him."

Jonouchi nodded slightly, smoothing the soft hair that rested against his cheek. He could feel Kaiba's breath hitch slightly in a sob, and snuggled closer, wishing his traitorous throat would let him talk. He'd like to say something to comfort his shaken love, something to tell him how much he had missed him. He settled for gently rubbing the shaking shoulders and nuzzling the silk soft skin of Kaiba's neck.

"Are you okay Jo?" Kaiba pulled away slightly, brushing his eyes absently. He looked carefully at the blond. Jonouchi looked fine. The slender body that pressed close to his felt strong. His skin was tanned in the same healthy golden glow it always took on if he'd spent any time at all in the sun. His brown eyes were bright and clear. The only thing that looked even a bit out of place was the long hair that hung down his back in loose pony tail. He reached out and tugged it playfully. "Like the hair."

Jo laughed silently and tugged him toward the bed.

Kaiba, seeing the rumpled sheets and comforter nearly groaned in anticipation. It looked so soft, so welcoming, and it probably smelled like Jonouchi. The thought of laying on it with Jo in his arms was as close to heaven as he was likely to get anytime soon. Unless of course… He eyed Jonouchi. "We aren't dead are we?"

Jo kissed him and shook his head. He pulled off the rather wrinkled suit jacket Kaiba was wearing, as the urged the tired brunette closer to the bed.

"And you'd tell me if I was hallucinating?" Kaiba absently slipped out of his shoes, stumbling a bit as the left one stubbornly tried to stay on his foot.

Jonouchi kissed him again and tossed his tie to the floor, then went to work on the belt.

"And I'm not dreaming? I've been having some strange dreams." Kaiba found himself nudged firmly onto the bed, as Jonouchi relieved him of his belt and pants.

The blond smiled, leaned forward, kissed him lovingly, then nipped his lower lip, before slipping his socks off his tired feet.

"Ow." Kaiba sighed contentedly as he snuggled down into the covers, pulling his lover down next to him. He closed his eyes, surrendering to the first restful sleep he'd had since Jo disappeared. "If you change your mind about any of those answers, Jo. Don't tell me."

Jonouchi snuggled into the curve of Kaiba's body, resting his head against one too thin shoulder. _No love. I'm not changing my mind. You're here, and I'm here and we're together. No one's going to change that. Not ever again._

**Bakura**

Bakura grumbled and skulked down the street. At least he was pretending to skulk, it really looked more like a half hearted slouch with a grimace thrown in here and there for effect. It worked just as effectively as a full out skulk, mainly because most people hustled to the other side of the street and pretended not to see the oddly dressed man, fingering his pant's button and fiddling around with a piece of elaborate jewelry that hung from his neck.

"Just put this on, he says." Bakura muttered sulkily to himself. "It's cold out, he says." He poked at the thick tweedy, herringbone sleeve of the suit jacket he wore. It even had Ra forsaken leather patches on the elbows. "You can't be too careful, he says. Damn hikari and his damn, sweet eyes. Should have run the second I saw him holding this fucking piece of shit."

He looked down at his toes, peeking out from a pair of Birkenstock sandals and shuddered. "Why couldn't I have gotten a perky midget for a hikari. Do you ever see the pharaoh dressed like this? Do you? No. He wears leather, nice, soft, sexy leather with buckles and studs and little straps that do nothing but look cool. And what do I get?" He glowered at his soft blue and green striped tee shirt that he was wearing backwards to hide the I Went to Egypt and All I Got Was This Stupid Tee Shirt logo, then shoved his hands deep into the violently colored plaid golf pants Ryou had unearthed from his father's closet and went back to pretending to skulk.

"Fuck this. How the hell am I supposed to sneak up on anyone dressed like an insane college professor on crack?" He eyed passing stores, wondering if any of them hid a pair of leather pants in his size. It didn't look hopeful, since most of them had signs reading 'Produce', 'Mom's All Night Dinner', and 'Cheap Smokes.' The last one smelled of stale tobacco and beer, so he slid past quickly, hoping the spirit of the tweedy coat wouldn't try to posses him, get him to buy a pipe, and make him sit in a pub laughing insanely at jokes about the Queen Mum.

He was half way to the local market, when the Ring vibrated against his chest. He frowned at it, then lifted it to look at it more closely. One of the little pointers feebly wobbled, as if it was trying to point to something, but it wasn't entirely sure where it wanted to point. He concentrated. The other pointers zinged to attention. Four pointed toward Domino City Museum. _Marik, Isis and…_he concentrated_…Shadi._ One pointed firmly toward the pharaoh _A quiet night home with your light, hmmm?_ But the last trembled indecisively. _The Eye?_ It was the closest he'd come to getting any reaction from the Ring about the Eye. When he noticed the Eye missing, he'd blasēly reached for the Ring and asked it to find the lost item. He'd been irked that the Ring hadn't even twitched at the request. Now it seemed at least a bit interested.

He looked around. A few people were hurrying past, on the other side of the street. A couple of cars were drifting by, peopled by happy families out searching for food. Remembering Marik's comment, he did a quick scan of the ground and gutters on the off chance the thing was rolling around ordering mochachinos.

The pointer shivered slightly and wiggled slightly to the left. Bakura hitched up his white belt, cursed his doe eyed light, and trotted across the street, following the weakly vibrating pointer. As the people on that side of the street suddenly found important errands on the other side, he looked around. Nothing seemed out of place. The street had no dark alleys for convenient lurking. No suspicious people dove hastily out of sight. There wasn't even a menacing bird hovering over head to lend an air of mystery. There was a small shop called Bessie Anne's Boutique that seemed to specialize in frilly shirts made of day-glow fabrics, a dismal store that fixed knives, clocks, and watches, and a small corner market. He bravely poked his head into each one, but was met with nothing but a few startled looks by the proprietors. The Ring shivered again and went limp.

"Damn." He looked up and down the street, then gave the Ring a half hearted shake. "Great, just great. Not only can't it find the Eye, but now it's not even pointing to the other items." He dropped it so that it lay back against his chest. "Why did I want these fucking things in the first place? The seriously fuck up your after life, don't do shit when you really need them, and malfunction at odd times." He poked the Ring irritably. "I should have listened to the priest and stole the Key or the Scales or something. Hell, I should have just assassinated the idiot pharaoh in his sleep, went home, got married and tried to populate Egypt with white haired tomb robbers." He shook his head and returned to his quest for cool clothing, muttering about how many pretty wives he could have had, how he would have spent his life dressed in the finest linins, and happily remained in ignorance of the word plaid.

**-00-**

The shadowy figure peeked out from the dressing room of Bessie Anne's Boutique and dropped a horrifyingly bright orange shirt on a nearby chair, as it frowned at the thief's retreating back.

_Hmm. You got a bit too close there. Perhaps I got a bit careless._ The figure walked casually out the door and watched the tomb robber slouch down the street. _I believe another distraction is in order. Now that Kaiba is paying for his sins, I can clear up a bit of old business. It wouldn't do for you to interfere._

**Kaiba and Jonouchi**

It was nearly evening when Jo woke up. Half asleep, he buried his face against the warm body next to him, groggily wondering why Koori was getting so boney, and tried to hide from the dimming sunlight. The body beneath his cheek, moaned sleepily and turned over, wrapping him in a hug, mercifully blocking the evil light. Jo snuggled closer, and noted that Koori was wearing a shirt, a shirt with buttons down the front. His bleary mind pointed out that Koori generally wore a loose fitting tunic when he was in human form and slept naked. Jo shoved the thought aside, for the far pleasanter prospect of falling back to sleep.

"Ahhh, I think you're supposed to feed him, now." E'on's voice prodded him back into the land of wakefulness. He waved an annoyed hand in the general direction of his dragon, and kept his eyes stubbornly closed. E'on could find toast for the flower all by himself.

"Yes, I remember Lady Yuai saying something about dinner." Koori assented from E'on's direction.

Jo frowned against the chest he was cuddled against. How could Koori be there and here? His foggy mind pondered this a moment, then he opened his eyes to get verification that Koori was in two places at once. He pushed himself up and stared down at the sleeping brunette, who held him in a loose embrace. His mind sprang back to life and the Shadow Realm seemed a much better place. Even the dopey flower warbling a song that was amazingly close to _Moon Shadow_ seemed wonderful. He reached out and ran a wondering finger down Kaiba's cheek, thrilling at the smooth skin that roughened slightly into a light five o'clock shadow.

"It's dinner time." Koori nodded to a pair of pants and a dark blue tunic that Shimo held. "You need to wake Master up and get him dressed."

Jonouchi looked at the thin shadowed face of his lover and hesitated. Even asleep, Kaiba looked completely exhausted. _I just can't leave you alone. Can I?_ He stroked the sable brown hair, noting that it wasn't as silky soft as normal. _Why do you do this to yourself?_

"Dinner." E'on dropped a pair of boots to the floor with a loud thump.

Kaiba groaned and tightened his arms around Jonouchi's waist. Jo sighed and nudged him, deciding he'd make Kaiba sleep late tomorrow. _Come on. Time to wake up and eat, so I can put you back to bed with a full tummy._

"No. No. You're not there. Go away. You're not there." Kaiba curled away from him, pulling the covers closer around him.

Jo blinked and looked up at the dragons. Koori was frowning worriedly. The other two shifted uneasily, glancing back and forth from Koori to Kaiba, then back to Koori. E'on looked confused. Jo reached out again to shake one thin shoulder, but Koori pulled him back.

"Maybe you should get dressed. I'll wake Master up." The dragon looked uneasy about something, which made Jo frown and poke him for an explanation. "He's having a nightmare." Koori carefully drew Jonouchi out of the bed. "He's dreaming that your ghost is haunting him, hurting him. It might be best if I wake him while you get dressed."

Jo shook his head stubbornly and sat back down on the side of the bed. _Not a chance Blue Eyes, and why the hell can't my dragon read my mind?_

"Actually, I can, but I think it's kind of rude, so I pretend I can't." E'on muttered sheepishly.

_Gee, how nice._ Jo pinched the bridge of his nose, then shook his head and reached over and nudged Kaiba again.

The brunette curled into a protective ball, clutching the covers. "No. I don't see you. I don't."

Jo picked up a pillow and whacked his lover with it, causing Kaiba to gasp and bolt upright with a cry. He looked around wildly for a moment, then reached out and pulled Jonouchi into his arms.

"Good morning, love." He kissed Jo softly.

Jo pointed out the window at the setting sun.

"Someplace it's morning." Kaiba pulled him down to the now very rumpled sheets, nibbling at his lips.

"Sex later, food now." E'on poked Jo's shoulder. "Man, I thought Yuai and Ledowr were bad. Are all humanoids like this? Sex, sex, sex?"

The Blue Eyes girl smacked the littler dragon. "Out. Just get out and don't come back till you get through puberty."

Kaiba smiled against Jo's lips. "You've actually been putting up with all of them?"

Jo pulled his head back down, resuming the kiss, with a little nod.

"Sweet, very sweet." A sarcasm laced voice drawled from the door. "And to answer your lovely question E'on. Damn right we do. Remind me to get someone to show you why, later."

Jo let Kaiba go and looked over toward the door where Ledowr leaned in the doorway.

Kaiba narrowed his eyes, annoyed at the interruption. "What are you doing here?"

Ledowr smirked, "Simple, if I want sex tonight, I've got to do at least one nice thing for Yuai. This is it. Be happy. And now that I've guaranteed I'll get laid, I'm out of here." He pushed himself upright and sauntered away.

"Humanoids are weird." E'on grumbled and followed after him.

The two lovers sighed in unison and pulled themselves out of the embrace of the cozy bed and let the three Blue Eyes bustle them into well dressed wakefulness.

The dinning hall was a huge, cavernous room with white columns carved like vine covered trees wound up to a green marble ceiling. The walls were carved with birds, leaves, flowers and an occasional woodland creature. The floor, covered with thick brown carpets woven into the likeness of scattered leaves, gave off a faint sound of crushing leaves when you stepped on it. The room, while undeniably a master piece of decoration, gave Jonouchi the creeps. Maybe it was the fact that the carvings tended to move if you watched them long enough, maybe it was the shadow filled corners that looked more like hungry, lurking carnivores than pleasant grottos, he didn't know, but he was happy to walk in next to Kaiba and the dragons at his side.

The only ones in the room were Yuai and Ledowr, who were chatting at the end of the long table. For once, they seemed to be getting along peacefully. Yuai was smiling happily, while her partner smirked in a slightly less mocking manner than usual.

Still feeling a bit uneasy, even with his lover at his side, Jonouchi kept the table between himself and the black magician when they reached the couple.

"Hi guys. Are you hungry?" Yuai waved one hand and the Witty Phantom materialized out of one of the lurking corners, hustling small, platter bearing, Beaver Warriors to place dishes of food on the table.

Kaiba nodded and sat down. "Have you ever seen Jonouchi not hungry?"

Yuai laughed, "Well, I did hear something about a half eaten hamburger."

Jo ignored that, busy eying the corner, as he settled into the chair next to Kaiba, wondering what, or who else, was creeping around in there. The dragons settled into seats, nodding polite greetings to the two, not looking even a little bothered by the dark places. Jonouchi relaxed and helped himself from the platter nearest to him. It looked like some kind of broiled fish. Noting that Kaiba was only taking tiny portions of food, Jo put a large serving of that dish on his plate.

Kaiba eyed his suddenly crowded plate and shook his head. "Half eaten? What did it bite him?"

"No, I killed it first." E'on supplied as he scuttled into the hall and thunked himself into a seat next to Shimo.

"Killed it?" Kaiba inspected his food warily.

"A small Hungry Burger." Koori nudged Jonouchi's shoulder and motioned to another platter and nodded to Kaiba's plate.

Jo eyed the orange vegetables, nibbled on one experimentally and scooped a small pile onto his lover's plate, next to the fish. Kaiba glowered at his dragon, who pretended not to notice, which allowed a serving of something like roasted potatoes and a roll to migrate next to the veggies and fish.

Yuai snickered softly. "Welcome to the Shadow Realm, where even meals are an adventure."

Kaiba fended off another helping of vegetables. "I'll be happy to get home then. I have enough problems without fighting my food."

"Eerr, well, yeah." Yuai suddenly sounded a lot less happy. "About that…"

Jonouchi stopped trying to sneak a meat pastry onto the edge of his love's plate and looked questioningly at her.

"About what?" Kaiba eyed the golden haired version of his nanny suspiciously.

"You two can't go back." Ledowr shrugged, leaning back in his chair. "You're here permanently."

"What do you mean, we can't go back?" Kaiba froze in place.

"When I got Kallon and Ledowr to bring Jonouchi here, it was sort of a rush job." Yuai worried her lip nervously. "We had to snatch him fast, or that man would have killed him."

Ledowr yawned. "He's stuck here unless someone from your world summons him back. Seeing that everyone in your world thinks he's dead, what are the chances of that?"

"You're the same way. Usually, if someone wants to travel back and forth between the realms, you have to leave a opening in the transport spell. We didn't have time for Jo, and the one who sent you here never wanted you to return." Yuai looked down at the table sadly. "I'm afraid you're both going to be here for awhile."

"No. I can't. Mokuba needs me." Kaiba shoved away from the table and stood up. "There's no way I can stay. Can't you contact the yamis, or send someone to tell them to summon us?"

"We can only go so far. Even Mahaddo, who has close ties to your realm can't stray too close to it's boarder. Koori probably came the closest in millennia, and he was only able to get there because of your presence." Ledowr waved lazily, as if brushing something aside. "Since Atem sealed the Shadow Magic, it takes an amazing amount of power to get to your realm." Ledowr grabbed a bread stick and munched on it, as he spoke. "It took us over four thousand years to gather enough energy to punch through to fetch Yuai back." He shrugged. "If you don't mind waiting, we could try it again. Of course by that time no one will remember you, but what is that phrase? Patience is it's own reward?"

"I can't accept that. I have to get back." Kaiba paced agitatedly, running his fingers through his hair.

"Accept it or not, it doesn't change the facts." Ledowr stood up and stretched.

"If it helps, you can keep an eye on Mokuba." Yuai poked her chaotic counter part. "Kallon has a magic birdbath that lets you see into the other realm."

"A magic birdbath?" Kaiba sounded doubtful.

"Don't sound so dubious." Ledowr tossed something onto the table. "A man who wanders around wearing a toe of a sock stuffed with mint, shouldn't look down on other people's magic trinkets."

Kaiba had forgotten about the little sock charm he'd been given. "Not my idea."

"Not too bad, actually. Completely ineffective since it's the wrong kind of mint, but not too bad." The magician ambled out of the room.

Yuai rolled her eyes and stood up. "Would you feel better if you checked on Mokuba?"

Kaiba nodded and followed after her as she walked down the hall and exited through a half hidden door. Jonouchi and the dragons looked mournfully at their plates, then got up to trail along.

E'on snatched up the basket of bread sticks and handed them out as they trotted to catch up. "What's the rush? Couldn't we finish dinner first?"

Shimo chomped down his bread and grabbed another. "It's got to be a mortal thing. Note that Lord Ledowr and Lady Yuai finished their meals."

Jo poked him.

"You seem to be the exception." Shimo smiled. "You have a good grasp of the importance of eating before running off to get into trouble."

Jonouchi nodded and nearly slammed into Kaiba's back as he stopped outside a door. Yuai carefully unlocked it, then stepped back to let them enter first.

"Kallon treasures this thing, so be careful." She closed and locked the door behind her once they were all in, then stepped over to the birdbath picking up a silver pitcher on her way over. She handed it to Kaiba. "Okay. You just need to pour this into the birdbath and think of Mokuba."

Kaiba gave the pitcher a sour look, but poured the contents into the birdbath anyway. Jonouchi leaned closer to look as the silvery water swirled around and suddenly shifted, showing a picture of Mokuba listlessly reading through a pile of papers. The kid seemed to be sitting in Kaiba's office at Kaiba Corp.. Behind him, the night sky filled the windows.

"Oh Gods, Mokie." Kaiba breathed. "What are you doing there?"

Jame walked into the scene and seemed to be talking to the younger Kaiba. Mokuba shook his head stubbornly and continued reading.

"Go home Mokie. Just leave it." Kaiba shook his head. "It's not that important."

Yuai touched his shoulder. "I'm sorry, but he can't hear you."

Kaiba nodded, "Can't you do anything?"

"No. I'm stuck here just like you." Yuai looked back at the swirling water. "I tried to get Kallon and Ledowr to send me back to my body, but…" she trailed off sadly.

"Your body's still there?" Kaiba frowned. "Then why hasn't anyone found it? Where did it go?"

"I'm sure Kallon did something…" Yuai stopped with a gasp.

The scene had changed. Instead of Mokuba's forlorn little figure, a slender blond girl was walking across a street. The little figure stopped, looked around then walked down a busy street.

"Oh dear Ra." Yuai stepped away from the sight of her own body walking around without her. "How?"

Kaiba leaned closer, looking carefully at the tiny form as it strolled through the evening crowds. "Here's a better question, when did you get the Millennium Eye?"

"What do you mean?" Yuai edged warily back to the sight.

Jo leaned closer, hanging over Kaiba's shoulder, as his love pointed.

"Look at the left eye. I've seen it on Pegasus's ugly face long enough to recognize it." Kaiba grimaced. "You've got the Millennium Eye where your normal eye should be."

Yuai covered her present eye, "I have the Millennium Eye? No way. Wasn't it bad enough to be saddled with the necklace? Why do I have to have the Eye? And look so skanky too. Did you notice that? I look like a worn out ho."

"What the hell is going on?" Kaiba watched as the other Yuai darted into a store. A second later Bakura walked through the scene. Once he'd passed, the tiny, skanky Yuai reappeared and trailed after him. "What the hell is going on?"

* * *

Review please. 

As you've probably noticed, I haven't given the Blue Eyes girl a name. I've been toying around with the character and wondered how many of you would like to see Kisara make an appearance as the Blue Eyes? Or would you rather she remain a dragon girl with the name of Yuki? Let me know.

MediaMiner

**Daebird:** Thank you for the great review! Well, Kaiba and Jonouchi are finally together again, but I got evil with poor little Mokie a bit. Oh well, one segment of angstiness gets over and another begins. When I wrote Kaiba's scene last time, I spent a lot of time thinking over everything I'd done to him. I just couldn't see torturing the poor guy for months and it not having an effect. You'll have to wait to see what the long term effect will be.

**dragonlady222: **Sorry about keeping you waiting for so long. Kaiba's rather shaky grip on reality is still open for debate, but now that he has Jonouchi looking after him, he should improve. Should of course being the operative word. Seeing that it's only chapter ten and there is still ten chapters to go and new problems popping up all over, things are far from over.

**emeralisle: **You've asked a very good question. Why hasn't anything happened to the hikaris? True the attacks have been centered on Kaiba, but as the series keeps pointing out, those Millennium Items are awfully tempting, and the innocent hikaris are easy targets… Thanks for sharing your thoughts! I'm always thrilled when I hear from a happy reader.

Fanfiction

**xMinkx:** It showed up! Thanks for the double effort. I appreciate it.

**Hikari Raine**: You have my deepest apologies for the long wait. I know what it's like to wait, and wait, and wait for the next chapter of a story, but I hopefully made it worth it. A bit of fluffiness, a touch of angst and a plotting loonie. I even gave poor Bakura plaid pants!

**clarity2199**: I actually didn't put Bakura consulting the Ring in because I thought it would be understood, but if you questioned it, I thought I would clarify the point, since I had the Ring pick up the trail of the baddie in this chapter. So thanks. Yeah, people do forget just what Mokuba is capable of, he's still a kid, but he's one smart, determined kid!

**Doomed to Ekko**: Since you weren't eating it, I gave your toast to the flower pot, hope you don't mind. There is still a bit of angst to be had. You can't expect Mokie to witness his brother being blown up and not feel sad. Do you? But evil as I am _authoress smiles angelically and her halo glows_ I can't torture such a cute, feisty little guy too much, now can I? _authoress notes her wire halo's batteries are growing dim and grumbles, snatches it off and stamps on it a few times._


	11. Failings

Disclaimer: Yugi-oh is the property of Kazuki Takahashi, who is a genius.

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

Well, my wrist is feeling better. I feel while roller blading and ripped up both my wrists, so they got put into those nasty Velcroy splints. When they came off, my wrist was stiff, but much happier for it's three week vacation. I also got a nice squishy wrist support for my computer, so hopefully this whole thing won't happen again. Thanks for being patient!

* * *

**Psyche**

Chapter Eleven: Failings

**Yugi and Mokuba**

"Well, it isn't like the mansion, but…ahhh…" Yugi looked uncertainly around the small guest bedroom, or more accurately, Mokuba's new room. The small cheerful room, to his eyes, never looked so very small till now, nor had the bright green and blue striped curtains looked so limp and worn. The carpet, with a small stain from a art project accident looked cheap and raggedy. The desk in the corner looked chipped and it's chair looked rickety and scuffed around the legs. The bed, which had been cheerful yesterday, now looked old. Even the new bookshelf Grandpa had bought yesterday looked like a pressboard nightmare.

"It's great Yugi. Honest." Mokuba gave him a half hearted smile and dropped his suitcase on the bed. "I'm just happy that your grandfather would do this for me."

"Yeah." Yugi noted that it didn't take a genius to figure out that Mokuba was far from happy. Actually, the word that seemed to closest describe his friend was gloomy. _As if I look any better._ "You want to unpack now? We could order pizza and maybe get Honda and Anzu over and watch movies later."

Mokuba shook his head. "I got some stuff to do from the office."

"Oh, you sure?" Yugi looked out the window and cringed at the beautiful view of the neighboring building. "We could probably bug Yami into playing Mousetrap with us. He just can't figure out that game. It's really funny to watch him try to strategize and bluff his way through it."

A tiny smile tugged at Mokuba's mouth for a second, then disappeared. "Seto would love to know…would have …" He shrugged, looking gloomier. "He would have loved to hear that. We… used to play all the time when… I was little. He was really great at it, but he let me win."

"Yeah, Yami's great weakness exposed and there's no one to take advantage of it." Yugi tried out a laugh. It didn't work well. He gestured to the suitcase, hoping to change topics. "Do you want some help unpacking?"

"No. I'm fine." Mokuba shrugged. "I was thinking of working on that paperwork first. I'll unpack later."

"Sure. Can I get you anything?" Yugi backed out of the room, feeling like a coward, but right now he had an almost overwhelming urge to find his yami, throw himself at him and cry.

"I'm fine." Mokuba's smile was just as broken as Yugi's. "Really."

"Okay. Grandpa's down in the shop and I'll be around here someplace." Yugi managed to get into the hall. "Probably with Yami. When you're done, come and find us and we'll… help you settle in and all that."

Mokuba sat down at the small desk and dug a huge stack of papers out of a side pocket of his suitcase. "Okay. Later then."

Yugi nodded at Mokuba's back and hurried away to find his yami. Ever since Bakura had dragged his semi conscious darkness home, leaving an almost equally stunned Mokuba off too, he had to know where his other and his grandfather were at all times. He even had periods where he would suddenly need to check on Honda, Anzu, Ryou, Mokuba, and even Bakura. He had their numbers programmed in the speed dial on all the houses phones and on his cell, just so he could call them quickly.

_Yami? Where are you?_ Yugi poked his head into their bedroom, but it was empty of all Egyptian spirits.

_Downstairs. Do you know where the box of Inuyasha plushies are?_

Yugi pattered quickly towards the shop. _On the top of the left hand shelf facing the door._

There was a pause. He could distantly feel his darkness grumble about something. _Oh, got it. Thanks aibou. How's Mokuba?_

_He wanted to finish some paperwork._ He trotted down the stairs to the shop. His eyes already scanning to find his other. As he got to the bottom of the steps, Yami stepped out of the supply room, balancing a couple of boxes, while trying to shut the door with one foot. "I'll get it."

Yami nodded and headed over to the counter. "He's doing paperwork?"

Grandpa looked up from where he was bent over the counter, labeling a group of soft toys. "Mokuba?"

Yugi almost danced with impatience, he wanted to hug Yami NOW and his darkness seemed to be ambling toward the counter with the slowest pace he'd ever seen. _If Yami got any slower, he would be going backwards._ Yugi fumed, trying not to notice the desperate tinge in his thoughts.

Yami put the box down, and was wiping off his hands when his hikari jumped him. His small, slender arms wrapped tightly around his waist and his head tucked itself under his chin. Yami didn't bother being surprised. He'd been getting jumped about once an hour for the last week.

He was only happy he was sleeping in the same bed as Yugi, since it saved him from getting rude awakenings. He'd tried, the first night after Kaiba's death, to sleep in his soul room, thinking that he'd recover faster from the pounding headache he'd woken up with after the explosion. He'd turned over in the middle of the night, feeling something wrong, just to find his hikari sitting on the edge of his bed, a pale, wide-eyed banshee, staring at him with a wild, bruised look. He'd looked like an escapee from his childhood nightmares of ghosts, wraiths and spirits that would come in the night for your soul. And in a way, that was what Yugi had been there for, searching, worrying for the other half of his soul.

"Did you think Grandpa was overworking me?" Yami kissed the top of his head, hugging him back.

"No. I was thinking that you were making him do all the work." Yugi took a deep breath and relaxed. He stepped back, feeling a real smile work it's way to his lips. "Poor Grandpa, trying to watch the store with only a pharaoh to help him."

"I managed." Solomon straightened with a few cracks and pops as his spine protested about having been hunched over for so long. "But now that you're here, Yugi, I think I'll leave the shop to you two and step out for a moment. A cup of tea and a few pieces of baklava are calling to me from the bakery." For an old man, he was amazingly quick getting from behind the counter and out the door, before Yugi had a chance to protest.

"Bye Grandpa." Yugi called as the door swung shut behind his elderly, frail elder, who was now striding briskly toward tea, baklava, and no doubt a game of go, with the other equally elderly, frail men that liked to sit outside the bakery on warm spring days, and whistle at pretty girls.

Yami was watching Solomon's retreating form too. "Do you think he'll be back by dinner?"

"Nope, not a chance. We'll need to either be brave and cook something or call out." Yugi glanced upstairs. "I asked Mokuba if he'd like pizza, but he didn't seem all that thrilled. He just wanted to work. You think he's alright?"

Yami nodded, "Don't worry about it right now, aibou, he needs time to be sad. When he's ready to be comforted, we'll be here."

Yugi nodded. _How about me? Do I get time to be sad?_ He tried to keep that thought quiet and to himself.

Yami, though, heard it. He pulled his light back into his arms. _Yes, aibou, you can be sad too. And I will always be here to comfort you._

**Kaiba and Jonouchi**

Kaiba stepped back from the birdbath of sight and glared out the window. "Great. Just great. I'm stuck here. Yami's there and so of course I find out his one weakness."

Jonouchi laughed silently from his chair by the wall. _And not a Mousetrap game in sight. Poor love._

Mahaado grinned. "The irony of it all. For thousands of years, you're soul's wanted to beat him in some game and now you find a way and you can't use it."

"I'm not seeing the humor." Kaiba glared at them both.

The two only seemed to find it funnier. The magician's smile only got broader and Jo was nearly sliding out of his seat with soundless giggles. Even his dragons, who were lounging in the sun that streamed through the windows, seemed amused. Shimo was grinning up at the ceiling, as if it had told a funny joke, and Koori's lips kept twitching suspiciously. Only the girl seemed to not find it funny, and that was because she was curled up asleep on Mahaado's lap.

Kaiba spun on his heel and grumbled his way out of the room. Jo, still snickering to himself, tossed a grin at the Dark Magician and followed after. Kaiba was prowling down the hall, scarring small monsters. Jo hung back admiring his lover.

Kaiba had recovered from his most recent bout of masochism. He was, to Jo's overly careful eyes, still too thin, but a week of being nearly pinned down and forced to eat and sleep had restored him to full Kiabaness. He could snarl, growl and elegantly stalk, with all the arrogance and beauty he had ever had. Jo particularly admired the elegantly stalking part.

Kaiba's business clothes had not survived the castle laundry system. The small monsters, that kept house for the castle residents, had found his suit jacket, silk shirt, pants, underwear, and even socks fascinating and had destroyed them in their curiosity. Only Kaiba's tie had survived in one piece. Everything else had come back in a tidy bundle of well washed shreds. Now, the brunet was forced to wear clothes that made him look like an escapee from a renaissance faire.

Jo particularly loved the nearly skin tight, burgundy silk pants that Koori seemed to show up with each morning. He had been spending a lot of time, since those pants showed up, following Kaiba around admiring the way the silk clung to the curves of his lover's ass. A dark blue tunic, with burgundy trim, which happily for Jo's new past time, was rather short, a embroidered belt and a matching set of supple blue boots completed the ensemble. In all, Jo felt his beloved looked…edible.

_If I could only get rid of the dragons for an hour or two._ He had never realized just how… annoying a dragon could be. All he had to do was open his eyes, even a little, and a dragon would be there. He would be in the middle of nibbling his way down his lover's body, just to look up and find Koori or Shimo looking at them with a quizzical look on their face. Only the girl and his Red Eyes didn't interrupt.

_E'on? Why don't you ever show up when Kaiba and I are having…uhh… trying to have… sex?_ Jo thought towards his dragon as he watched a Feral Imp scamper hurriedly out of Kaiba's path.

_Why should I? It's not like you're doing anything interesting._ The messy, little dragon paused for a second and Jo could sense that him gulping something down. _Why? Need help?_

Jo could feel his face turn red as his mind suddenly supplied a picture of his dragon boredly helping him and Kaiba have sex while asking "What's so great about this?" _NO. I was just wondering why Koori and Shimo keep showing up._

_I don't know. Maybe they want to find out what Kisara and Mahaado are doing._ Jo could hear a bit of crunching in the background of his dragon's voice.

_Kisara?_

_The third Blue Eyes? The girl? You do have girls over there don't you?_ More crunching and gulping. _Hey! Is that why Lady Yuai wanted to come back? She was the only female and everyone else was male? Wow. Your world is weird._

Jo ground his teeth together and scampered to catch up with Kaiba. Maybe, he could lock the two overly curious Blue Eyes in a closet someplace and pounce on his love. Six days and twenty some odd hours was long enough. He was getting desperate. If he didn't have his lover writhing and moaning in pleasure soon, he was going to hunt those dragons down and Kaiba would have to find some other Duel Monster cards to obsess over.

**Ryou**

Ryou looked up and noticed that the mailman was just walking away from their building. "Mail's here."

Silence answered him.

He shrugged. Bakura disappeared early last night and hadn't shown up again till well past dawn. He would have been surprised if his dark had answered him.

Ryou stretched languidly and dragged himself out of the chair he had been curled in reading. He set his book down on a end table, considered getting a soda, then ambled over to find his shoes before he went down and got the mail.

The stairwell smelled of spring, as he walked down its twisting path. The scent of the bay and cherry blossoms wafted in soft, caressing breezes through the building, tugging a smile from Ryou.

_I should call Yugi and invite him, Yami and Mokuba out for a picnic before the cherry blossoms fall._ He patted down the last turn and walked over to the small row of mailboxes. He fished a key out of his pocket and unlocked the box as a small shadow blocked the light from the door. Smiling he looked up, and found Yugi's girlfriend standing there, looking at him with the bright light of the springtime day shining behind her.

"Yuai! Where have you been?" Ryou turned, smiling. "Yugi's wondered where you went."

The girl nodded, stepping closer. Her blond hair hanging in a limp shaggy curtain around her face. "Your yami is getting to be a bother." Her voice was harsh, low and grating. "I need a distraction and you're it."

"Yuai?" Ryou stepped back. "Are you…"

She looked up at him, grinning a cold, snarly smile. "I don't have time to deal with that scum now."

Ryou stumbled into the staircase, as he noticed that where one of Yuai's eyes should have been, the Millennium Eye was now imbedded. _Yami! Yami! I need you! Something's wrong._

The Eye glowed in Yuai's petite face. "Say hello to Kaiba for me."

_Ryou? What…?_ Bakura's voice sounded half asleep.

Ryou turned and bolted up the stairs, stumbling and bruising his leg as he fled. _Yami! Help! The Eye!_

There was a flash of golden light, then darkness wrapped around him, dragging him away.

Bakura, half awake and half out the door, felt a familiar wave of corrupt darkness. "Ryou!"

A half second later the pain hit, sending him to the floor, feeling as if he had been ripped in two. "Ryou…"

**-00-**

Ledowr leaned against a column, watching his wife hold court. It was his latest hobby, watching his darling sit on that cold, uncomfortable, stone throne, listening to morons that inhabited the court yelp and whine about the unfairness of life. He sighed happily as one of the most annoyingly, long winded, pompous puppies scampered to the foot of the dais and bowed in preparation for what looked to be a very long, dull speech. The twit had even brought a huge stack of notes. "Better you then me, love." He wondered if he should wave a passing elf down and ask for a cup of wine to toast her with.

"Lord Ledowr?" A sweet, but oddly raspy voice came from behind him.

He narrowed his eyes, silently cursing himself for not going up to one of the private balconies that over looked the throne room. He should have known some dolt would come over and annoy him about some petty, court foolery. "Just go in there and wait your turn like all the rest."

"Lord Ledowr, I… uh…"

Ledowr, snarling irritably and wondering if he could just toss the twit that was bothering him into the moat, turned to glare at the intruder. The Change of Heart spirit stood, carefully cradling a small, limp, white haired figure in its arms. He'd spent enough time watching Yuai when she had still been trapped in that other world to recognize her friend Ryou. Quickly suppressing the twinge of concern he felt at the sight of the unconscious boy, he sighed, nodded, waved the spirit to go upstairs with its burden, and stomped into the court. "Sorry, oh delight of my life," He made sure he sounded anything but delighted. "but you've got another guest."

* * *

**Just for clarity2199 and anyone else that needs this:**

Jame: Kaiba's secretary who wants to be fired.

Yuai: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately.

Lord Kallon: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

Ledowr: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three ruler of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be.

Koori: The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon

Shimo: The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon

Kisara: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon

E'on: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon

* * *

Please review! 

**Media Miner**

**Velvetina:** Yay! I'm a meanie! I have to admit, I am a sucker for happy endings, but that doesn't mean that I can't torture everyone before hand! Don't count Mokie out yet! He's a Kaiba and no one's going to get away with killing his brother!

**dragonlady222:** Kaiba's a bit distracted right now and if Jo has his way, he'll probably be even more distracted in the future. I thought the little bit about Yuai would surprise everyone. I got evil. I distracted everyone with Yuai becoming the ruler of the Shadow Realm, when all it really was, was to get her out of the way so her body would be available for possession. authoress basks in her own evil glow I love it when I'm bad.

**Taji Kanjinnamida:** Thanks! I'm happy that you like my work. I, personally, like all the pairings, cannon or non. I think that liking and not liking is more a reflection on a writer then on the pairing. Thanks again for joining my little trip into insanity!

**Fanfiction. net**

**Mileena:** I like that dragon too. He's fun to write. I agree, Kisara it is!

**Hikari Raine:** Thanks for the sympathy. I'm hoping to update more often now. I even got a squishy thing, just to make sure this doesn't happen again! Well, as you can see, it's Bakura's turn to suffer. First it was the clothes (admit it, Ryou is the more evil of the pair) and now his beloved tenshi is gone. Poor, poor Tomb Robber.

**Dragonlady222: **Thanks for the double review! I put the response up in the MM section.

**daughterofanubis:** Sorry for the extra long wait, but I really appreciate your taking time to read my fic.

**kuramarulez: **I'd like Yami to pounce on his hikari too. Yugi needs a bit of loving. Maybe an entire chapter of everyone getting laid at the same time….

**Doomed to Ekko: **Don't worry so about darling Mokie. His friends are hovering nearby, even if they are a bit shaky too. Eeek, I've prolonged your agony, and you're spitting up hairballs too! I do feel shame at my behavior… For your sake, I will try to update more often, so here's some toast with some nice hairball remed…malted jam on it. Carpel tunnel is a nasty thing. It feels like your wrist is going into rebellion and your fingers start going all tingly an numb. Get a squishy thing for your keyboard and pray to all the gods of the computer that you never get it.

**xMinkx:** Go ahead and play with my style. It's not plagerism to copy someone's style, only if you steal their stuff word for word. I figure style is like clothes. You try things on and keep the things that fit. If you look, you can see me playing with styles. Sometime during _Chrysalis_ I tried out Edmonia Dantes beautiful style of describing actions, but only kept a fraction of it. It just wasn't comfortable. I considered having Kisara step into a Seto/Seth/Jou relationship, but, face it, 5000 years is a long time to wait for anyone, especially if a very eligible Dark Magician is hanging around feeling lonesome.

**clarity2199:** Oh…good idea…the water fountain of sight. I hadn't thought of that. Just turn the handle and POOF, you can see anywhere. Mind you the water is warm and tastes funky. I agree, Yuki is overused and I have too many characters running around with a Y beginning their first name.


	12. Wounds

Disclaimer: Yugi-oh is the property of Kazuki Takahashi, who is a genius.

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

**Psyche**

Chapter Twelve: Wounds

* * *

OCs

**Ahmose: (Egyptian for: The moon is born)** Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on**: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame**: Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon**: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara**: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Koori**: **(Japanese for: Ice)** The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr**: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three ruler of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt.

**Shimo**: **(Japanese for: Frost)** The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai**: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately.

* * *

**Kaiba, Ledowr, Kallon, Yuai**

It was late. The castle was still and quite. The wind, whispering up from the city bellow brought sleepy scents to flow amongst the tall scented candles and the banked fires that glowed drowsily here and there in the rooms. The court and it's attendant courtiers, had long ago yawned their softly padded selves off to bed, and now only a few ghosts and spirits flitted restlessly about.

The exceptions to this quiet slumber, were seated around a fire sipping wine. Kaiba, who had snuck out of bed, after making sure Jonouchi was asleep for the night, was sitting in an overstuffed lounge chair, that seemed to have been imported straight from some English country house. Kallon, who had been unearthed from the castle library, had settled into a high wing back chair and was defiantly still reading a heavy, leather bound tome that occasionally mumbled sarcastic things at him. Yuai and her sometimes beloved spouse, were sitting over a small table, near the fire bickering their way through a chess game, and taking turns holding a conversation with the others.

"He still hasn't figured it out?" Yuai tapped her fingers against the side of the table keeping half an eye on her husband and half on Kaiba, who was frowning irritably at the fire, rolling the bowl of a wine glass in his fingers.

"No. As far as Jo's concerned, I got a good night's rest, a few good meals and bounced back to normal." Kaiba flicked one long fingered hand dismissively. "If he starts getting suspicious one of the dragons distracts him."

Yuai nodded and turned to the game as Ledowr set back in his chair with a tiny smirk. "Not terribly observant."

Kaiba took a sip of his wine and shrugged. "He sees what he needs to see. He needs Seto, so he sees Seto."

"We really shouldn't lie to the boy." Kallon lifted his nose out of the books pages, rapping it roughly with his hand as it muttered a particularly offensive comment. "He should be well enough to handle the truth."

"E'on says no." Kaiba yawned and stretched back into the chair, edging his feet closer to the fire and setting his glass down on a convenient side table. The castle seemed too cold and damp for his liking tonight. He wondered idly if a storm was coming. "And I don't want to chance any harm coming to him. Seto would never forgive me."

Yuai, poking her beloved to get his attention, nodded. "He does love Jo." She sighed, shaking her head. "How is Seto? Any better?"

Kaiba looked blank for a moment, then blinked as if waking up. "He's still sleeping. Considering the damage done to his mind, I'm not surprised." He shook his head, frowning. "I wish you hadn't shown him that damn mirror."

Yuai bit her lip. "I thought if he saw his brother, it would help. If I knew it would only cause him more stress…"

"Stop doing that, love." Ledowr looked up from the chess board. "Thinking's never been your strong point."

Yuai smacked him. "This from the man who's motto is eat, annoy, and get laid as often as possible."

Kallon tisked softly, "Children, children. That's enough. We still have to figure out a way to get our guests home. As much as I like young Jonouchi, it would be better for him, Seto and Ryou to return."

"Yes." Ledowr watched as Yuai contemplated the chess board. "We aren't the SPCA for stray humans."

"Thank all the gods for that." Kaiba tapped his foot and gazed thoughtfully into the fire. "Is there any way we could use Ryou to contact the tomb robber?"

Kallon shook his head. "Ryou's too far away from his yami right now. They can't communicate over this distance."

"I sent Mahado out to patrol the area closest to your realm." Ledowr made a pleased sound in the back of his throat as Yuai leaned back. "If the pharaoh or any of his dim witted hangers on think to come over for a visit, Mahado can bring them here." He growled. "It also has the added bonus of sparing us having to watch him and your dragon snuggle cutely in every corner of the castle. Damn, I was coming out of the solar yesterday and nearly tripped over the two of them giggling on the steps."

"Fine. One more dragon to keep Jo distracted." Kaiba's lips twitched into a humorless grin. "If Seto doesn't recover soon, I'm going to have to find some believable reason to move to another room."

"Frisky in the morning, is he?" Ledowr captured one of Yuai's pieces and tossed it into a basket by the edge of the board with a triumphant smirk.

"And talented. If Seto wasn't so attached to the boy, I'd be a happy, well satisfied man." Kaiba shook his head. "However…"

Yuai grinned nastily back at her husband and wiped his queen off the board. "If you want a bit of relief, Neo seems to be interested."

"Such a concerned mother." Ledowr lightly kicked her foot. "You're not supposed to toss our sweet innocent darlings into bed with every horny male that wanders past."

Yuai blinked, "Neo's our son? When did that happen?"

"A few millennia ago." Ledowr arched an eyebrow at her. "Maternal instincts short circuiting there, love?"

Yuai glowered at Kaiba. "I take it back, stay away from my son." She then returned the kick to Ledowr, with interest. "And you had better be careful, or the only satisfaction you're going to get is if you really do figure out how to fuck yourself."

"Getting back on topic here." Kallon set his book down. "We have to get our guests back to their own realm."

"I was thinking, you mentioned killing frogs." Yuai smiled as Ledowr narrowed his eyes in frustration at the board.

"Unhappily, we are rather short of frogs at the moment." Kallon coughed delicately. "Apparently the Great White find they are a delightful aphrodisiac."

"Frogs are out then." Kaiba rubbed his chin. "Yuai said that she met you twice. Once at the convention she went to and then in Domino. If you only had enough power to go over there once…"

"True. I had to plant an anchor on her," Kallon shook his head. "Something to catch her soul and draw it into this world. It took awhile for it to attune to her. Once it did the anchor allowed me to return the second time, using Yuai's own power to do the transfer."

"An anchor?" Yuai frowned. "What anchor?"

"The statue." Ledowr mumbled, chewing on one lip.

"My statue?" Yuai blinked. "Isn't it still there? Could we use it again?"

"No." Kallon shook his head. "It was destroyed when you shifted back to our realm."

"Oh." Yuai pursed her lips into a tiny frown. She had liked that statue. She looked over at the life size version that sat absently biting a cuticle across from her. She gave the top of his head a fond smile, which she quickly smothered when he glanced up.

"So the only way to get back, is for someone over there to summon one of us." Kaiba tipped his head. "I'll bet Bakura tries to call Ryou home to him."

"It's still too far." Ledowr made his move and groaned as Yuai put him neatly in checkmate. "He has to locate Ryou to transfer him back."

"How about the game? If they summon Mahado or one of the dragons, could we deliver a message then?" Kaiba looked questioningly over at Kallon.

"No. Those are still holograms." Yuai scooped the remainder of the pieces off the board and into the basket. "They can't talk or interact with anything. Even if we hung a sign around Mahado's neck, it wouldn't show up."

"Seto has a memory of a sorcerer Anubis…" Kaiba frowned in concentration. "He was bringing monsters over from the Shadow Realm."

"And a fine mess that made too." Ledowr snorted. "Thinien is still cowering in the cellar, scaring the shit out of every maid that needs a new mop."

"Also, Anubis was in that realm summoning monsters from this realm." Kallon sighed and stood up. "Which is precisely what we need to happen, only this time for the good of us all, and not to puff up the ego of a megalomaniac."

Kaiba stood as well, "It seems we are back at the beginning, and I need to get back to Jo before he realizes I'm not there."

Yuai and Ledowr stood as well. "Once Ryou wakes up, maybe we can get a better idea of what's happening. There might be something we can use."

Kallon nodded, heading for the door. "Yes, that sounds reasonable. Good night children."

Kaiba nodded. "Sleep well." He nodded to the two others. "And you as well."

Ledowr shrugged. "Wasn't actually planning on slee…"

Yuai's elbow hit his ribs with a loud thunk. "Good night Seth. We'll see you tomorrow."

**Bakura**

_Ryou? _It had to have been the thousandth time that day that he'd called, and like the previous nine hundred and ninety nine times, his light didn't answer.

He sat in the chair, looking at the book that Ryou had been reading. He could picture his slender light, with his head bowed intently over the novel, sitting with the afternoon sun glittering in his hair.

_Hikari, answer me!_

In his mind, he could see his light look up from the book and watch the mailman walk away from the building. He could here his voice call out. "Mail's here."

_Where are you? Hikari?_

"It's getting creepy the way he keeps staring at that book." Malik sat perched on a footstool watching the thief carefully.

Marik glanced at his fellow yami and shrugged. "Just keep watching him. Yami and I will be done in a few more minutes."

Yugi, stood across the room, hugging himself, with a stunned look on his face. "Maybe we should…"

"Sit down." Mokuba walked in from the kitchen carefully holding three steaming mugs of tea. "Here, drink this."

Yugi obediently took a cup of tea and sat down sipping it. Mokuba handed the other one to Malik and shooed him over to sit next to Yugi. Marik took another look at Bakura, then disappeared down the night darkened stairs.

Yami was kneeling on the floor, carefully putting the finishing touches on the hieroglyphs of a chalk circle. Candles stood inside the circle, guttering in the breeze coming in the buildings doors. "Any improvement?"

Marik shook his head. "Did you really expect one? Yugi looks like he's going to shatter at any second. My hikari is pretending everything is just fine and the thief is catatonic. Just be happy the initial shock hasn't worn off yet, or we'd be trying to figure out how to hide all the bodies."

"Why bother?" Yami sat back and inspected his work. "It's not like they can put him in jail."

"Ready?" Malik carefully stepped into the circle, trying not to catch his pants on fire.

Yami nodded and stood up. It was a simple spell, a few chalked lines, a quick activating spell and it should reveal who attacked Ryou, and hopefully where Ryou was. Considering the condition Bakura was in, Yami didn't have much hope that Ryou was calmly sitting on the other side, waiting patiently to get called back.

Yami and Marik turned and faced one another and started chanting.

"Darkness, light, fire bright

Burn the veil of time

Let us behold

What is hidden from sight."

The chalk circle flared incandescently. Instead of the dim light of the streetlights, soft afternoon light flooded through the door. A far off door opened and closed, and a light, rapid steps could be heard descending. A moment later Ryou skipped down the last set of stairs and walked over to his mailbox. Smiling, the white haired hikari pulled a key out of his pocket and unlocked the box. As he did, a shadow appeared in the door.

"By Ra!" Yami breathed.

Marik took his eyes off Ryou and saw Yuai standing in the doorway.

"Yuai! Where have you been?" Ryou turned, smiling. "Yugi's wondered where you went."

"Dear Ra. It was Yuai." Yami watched wide eyed as the girl nodded ans stepped closer to Ryou.

"Your yami is getting to be a bother." Her voice was harsh, low and grating. "I need a distraction and you're it."

"She looks different." Marik stepped as close to her as the circle permitted. "Didn't she clean… Fuck! She's got the Eye."

Yami came to stand next to him. "She doesn't sound or look the same either. Given a choice, she prefers to be clean. She doesn't look like she's bathed in weeks."

"Yuai?" Ryou stepped back, a frightened look spreading across his face. "Are you…"

She looked up at him, grinning. The Eye gleamed where her left eye should have been. "I don't have time to deal with that scum now."

Ryou stumbled into the staircase, half falling as he looked wildly up the stairs.

The Eye glowed in Yuai's petite face. "Say hello to Kaiba for me."

"Huh?" Marik looked over at Yami. "Did she just say…"

"Damn. I knew we should have checked that out." Yami watched as Ryou scrambled backwards and was unceremoniously tossed into the Shadow Realm. "When the thief is right, the thief is right."

Yuai still grinning a nasty smile, turned and walked out of the building.

"Okay. If the Eye, or Yuai or whatever, was after Kaiba, then what does it want now?" Marik shook his head and leaned over to snuff out one of the candles, ending the spell.

"A distraction." Yami still stood looking at the spot Yuai had stood.

Marik snuffed out the rest of the candles and noted the carpet had melted where the chalk hieroglyphs had been. "Kaiba too? That means both Ryou and him are now over in the Shadow Realm. Do you think there's anything left of him?"

Yami shook his head and turned around. "If this is true, probably not. He was mentally unstable before he was banished. After nearly a week, I doubt there'd be anything left but a mindless shell. If that."

"Maybe your old friend Seth…" Marik arched his eyebrows questioningly.

Yami looked over at him. "What's with the questions? Please don't say you've decided to get interested in interpersonal relationships. I'm an old, old spirit. I can't take too many shocks in one day."

Marik shook his head. "I like the kid." He nodded upstairs toward the apartment.

Yami walked up the stairs. "Fine. Just don't go developing a conscience on me."

**Yami**

The dueling arena was just as he remembered it. The stone walls were covered by carvings of Shadow beasts. The sand where the monsters would be summoned was neatly raked in circles. Candles sparkled in golden holders, illuminating the scene with a warm amber light. He could even smell the scent of sandalwood oil that someone had mixed with the wax.

Why he could remember the dueling arena, but couldn't clearly picture his mother's face, he didn't know. However, this was the arena, and oddly he was already there when he walked in. This was a new twist in his dreams. His other self was standing at one end of the arena, and Seth stood opposite. The heavy stone door behind him swung shut with a soft sigh.

He took a deep breath and walked over to where he was sitting, waiting for Seth, who was fussing with a broken sandal strap.

"I told you not to buy sandals from Hisop." His other self called cheerfully across the arena.

"Thanks cousin." Seth growled as another strap broke. He shook his head in disgust and pulled the sandals off his feet. "But seeing that you spend half your life limping around with blisters, I'm not about to take your advice on footwear."

His other self grinned broadly sprawling back in the chair with his legs stretched in front of him. "I may limp, but I look good while doing it."

Seth tossed the sandals over towards the door. "Remind me to get another set."

Yami sighed. He didn't remember any of this. Still, as he watched his other self stand up and amble over to his position at the side of the sand, he was happy to see it. It wasn't often that he remembered relaxing and teasing Seth. Most of his memories were about betrayal, war and death.

"Remember, no holding back." Seth flipped his cape out of the way. "I want to test and see just how powerful my new monster truly is."

His other self nodded. "No holding back."

Yami settled himself into the abandoned chair as the two began the duel. The opening moves weren't spectacular on either of their parts. Seth seemed more interested in trying to keep his feet clean then winning the duel, and his other self seemed more interested in teasing his cousin.

"Careful, you might get your sweet little feet dirty if you do that." His other self snickered as Seth's monster demolished a sluglike creature that sprayed goo across the arena.

"You summoned that on purpose didn't you." Seth hopped backwards avoiding the green slime.

"Of course I did. This is a duel."

Yami smiled and wondered if this is how Yugi felt, before he had gotten his own body and watched him duel from the sidelines. He felt oddly disjointed, as if he was both there and here. He watched a few more turns pass, then Seth summoned the Blue Eyes.

_Wait, wait. _He got up frowning. _He didn't get that till later. Till nearly the end._

His other self looked up at the dragon admiringly. "Beautiful. It's absolutely amazing cousin."

Seth nodded sadly. "It cost me, though."

"I heard."

_No I didn't. Wait a moment…_Yami stepped closer to himself. He was exactly the same as the last time. The same hair, the same clothes, the same jewelry… _But the earrings... I got them just a few months before I died, but I…he's wearing them._

"Let's see what it can do."

The other him called on the Celtic Guardian to come forth and, not surprisingly, the Blue Eyes demolished him without effort.

"Not bad. Not bad at all." Seth nodded, pleased.

The other him pursed his lips thoughtfully, then summoned the Dark Magician. Mahado appeared, turning his attention to the white dragon.

_Oh Ra! This has to be close to the end. Bakura has the Ring and Seth and I…_

Seth shook his head. "Summon another. I don't want to attack him."

His other self set Mahado into defense and summoned Ancient Elf. The dragon made short work of her too.

"Hmmm. I wonder." A small mischievous smile tugged at his other self's lips.

Seth looked questioningly at him.

"Let's see your dragon handle something a bit bigger." The smile got wider.

Yami suddenly felt cold. "No, don't. Don't do that."

A sudden low hum reverberated through the arena, making even the chair vibrate across the floor. A few loose carvings shook loose and crashed down in a shower of dust. An explosion of light filled the room and Obilisk, the Tormenter stood before the dragon.

"No! You idiot, don't summon…" Yami yelled desperately at his other self, unreasoning panic clawing into his stomach.

Seth stepped back out of the arena, staring at the god with awe filled eyes. "That's more of a test than I really wanted cousin."

The other him smiled and raised his hand pointing across the sand. "Obilisk, destroy."

Time seemed to slow.

A tiny figure raced out onto the sand. A tiny figure with black and gold hair, smiling happily at him. Reaching for him as he ran. The bright ruby eyes crinkled in laughter and love. "Papa home!"

His other self's eyes snapped disbelievingly to the tiny boy, then traced back to where the door was stuck ajar. A fallen carving propping it open.

Yuai stood panting breathlessly in the door, with one hand stretched out. "Ahmose! No!"

Obilisk grinned. The cold stone face twisting in glee as he aimed, not at the Blue Eyes, but at the child who raced towards his father.

Seth leapt forward, trying to intercept. "Ahmose! Ahmose! I resign. I RESIGN!"

Yuai was racing after the small one.

His other self screamed. "NO! OBILISK NO!"

Yuai grabbed Ahmose, twisting around trying to shield him with her body as the god struck. There was a blinding flash of light and it was over. Yuai's lifeless charred body fell to the sand and shattered. The small, far more vulnerable form of Ahmose had been obliterated.

His other self fell to his knees, staring at the spot. The spot he'd killed his son. Then he threw back his head and howled. A long despairing cry of pain and loss and guilt.

Seth fell to his knees next to the cinders that had once been Yuai. "Oh Ra. Ahmose. Yuai."

Yami woke screaming.

* * *

Review Please! You know you want to….

**Mediaminer**

**dragonlady222:** Seto has to show up first! Sneaky, sneaky Seth. But at he's working on it!

**Taji Kanjinnamida: **I work hard not to turn anyone into a Mary Sue. It's one of the reasons I limit the time Yuai gets in the story. My take on fan fics is that I'm writing a story about the characters in the original story, not about my character, so I'm carefull.

**FanFiction**

**dragonlady222:** Thanks again for the reviews. Poor everyone. Only Jo and the dragons seem happy. I'm sure once Seto wakes up from his nap, yells at his yami, and gets to thinking something will pop into his head.

**Kuramarulze:** I'm working on it! I think I've gotten nearly everyone except Kaiba into place. Well, Ryou too, but then again….


	13. Deals

Disclaimer: Yugi-oh is the property of Kazuki Takahashi, who is a genius.

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

* * *

**Psyche**

Chapter Thirteen: Deals

* * *

OCs

**Ahmose: (Egyptian for: The moon is born)** Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on**: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame**: Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon**: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara**: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori**: **(Japanese for: Ice)** The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr**: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be.He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt. She is Ahmose's mother, which will be covered later.

**Shimo**: **(Japanese for: Frost)** The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai**: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

* * *

**Yugi**

_Get up. Put on bathrobe. Put on slippers. Go to the bathroom. Pee. Wash hands_. Yugi opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling. _Get up._ He pushed the covers back and sat on the edge of the bed. That hadn't been too hard. It was always good to begin the day successfully.

The next hurdle however was that his bathrobe was on the other side of the room and his slippers were right there next to his bed. He considered putting the slippers on first, then the bathrobe, but decided against it. He had a list of things to do and he'd do them in order. He stood, wobbling a little as he realized that he'd slept funny and his foot was asleep, then limped over and got his bathrobe.

_Put on slippers._ He walked back over and put the slippers on his feet. His to do list was down by three and it was still early. He congratulated himself and walked toward the bathroom, his slippered feet dragging across the floor in soft muffled thumps.

Someone was already in the bathroom. Yugi blinked at the door, a small confused frown on his face. That hadn't been on his to do list. He bit his lip, looked up and down the hall uncertainly then reviewed his list._ Get up. Done. Put on bathrobe. Done. Put on slippers. Done. Go to the bathroom… _He looked at the door again, it was definitely closed.

_Yami?_ When all else fails, consult your yami. It was practically one of the ten commandments of having a yami. It came just before Thou shalt not give your yami caffeine and someplace after Thou shalt dress your yami in leather.

Ryou had delighted in breaking the leather commandment. He'd somehow get Bakura to dress in the most humiliating clothes on the face of the planet and then sneak pictures of his darkness. Tucked away in a safe deposit box in the bank, Ryou had an entire photo album of Bakura dressed in everything from an outfit of a fluffy pink winter coat with purple tights and a sparkly pink scarf with pompoms, to a pair of Bermuda shorts, knee high black stockings, a starchy white shirt and a suit coat.

_I wonder if there's photography in the Shadow Realm?_ Yugi looked at the door again.

The door opened and Yami looked out at him with a mouth full of toothpaste. _Aibou? I thought I told you to sleep in late._

Yugi reviewed his to do list. _Get up. Put on bathrobe. Put on slippers. Go to the bathroom. Pee. Wash hands_. Nope, no sleeping in late. He shook his head, blinking owlishly at his yami.

Yami spat out the toothpaste, watching his hikari stand mutely in the doorway, swaying slightly. It always amazed him the things that his hikari could do while still mostly asleep.

It had taken half the night to get Yugi back to sleep after he had woken him up after his nightmare. His light had been close to hysterical, crying, shivering and clinging to him like a leech, terrified that someone was going to take him away from him. Yami had finally resorted to magic to calm his little one down before he hurt himself or the closest person, which would have been him. He wiped his mouth off and stepped out, letting his semi-awake light shuffle into the bathroom.

He waited outside till his light was finished and came wobbling out, looking a bit lost. "Aibou?"

Yugi frowned sleepily at him, reviewing his list again.. _Get up. Done. Put on bathrobe. Done. Put on slippers. Done. Go to the bathroom. Done. Pee. Done. Wash hands. Done. _"I don't have anything else to do."

Yami pulled him into a hug, hiding a smile in Yugi's hair. He'd overheard his light's to-do list. _Get sleepy hikari back to bed and cuddle him._ Still keeping his other close, he slid back into their room and onto the bed. He pulled his light down next to him and settled him against his side. Yugi snuggled like a kitten, his violet eyes slipping closed as he nestled down, wrapping one arm around his waist. _Done._

**Mokuba**

Mokuba flipped to the last folder in the stack and started scanning its contents. It was nothing special, just an order for a dueling arena from a company in Los Angeles. He quickly skimmed through the contents and then flipped it closed. He wrote a quick memo to have it forwarded to someone in the international sales department and leaned back into his brother's chair.

He hadn't changed anything in the office yet, and had no plans to change anything. It comforted him to sit in his brother's chair. It smelled like Seto and sometimes, if he closed his eyes, he could pretend that Seto was there with him, leaning over his shoulder giving him advice. Besides, Seto was going to come back.

He swung the chair and looked out the window at Domino City. He'd overheard Yami and Marik talking yesterday. He'd been coming down the stairs to tell them that Bakura had fallen over and wondered if he should leave the thief alone or if he should pull him off the carpet. He'd been on the landing above and heard what the two yamis had said, and could guess what hadn't been said.

Seto was alive and in the Shadow Realm, probably hurt and lost. Therefore there was nothing short of Armageddon that was going to stop him from getting his brother back home. He even had a plan, and most likely a willing assistant. If he'd go through the apocalypse to get his brother back, Bakura would waltz through hell to get Ryou back. It didn't take a genius to guess that the tomb robber, once he pulled his mind out of shock, was going to destroy everything that stood between himself and retrieving his light. No one stole from the King of Thieves and Ryou had been the most treasured thing in his life. All Mokuba had to do was tag along with him and he'd get Seto back.

And once Seto was home, everything would be alright.

Nodding to himself he got up and grabbed his jacket. He walked over to the door connecting his…Seto's office from Jame's and poked his head into her territory.

She was happily humming some song or other and flipping through a set of files. Since he'd taken over for his brother…temporarily…very temporarily… she had been merrily redoing Seto's assistants. The twitchy guy that had nervously identified himself as the liaison for R&D had been shuffled off to working directly on technology for Kaibaland. His replacement turned up the next day, a young woman a laid back Southern California beach drawl and a thatch of wild blond hair. The contract specialist that had made his ears hurt had disappeared and a middle age man with a big rumbling laugh had taken her place. Even the pretty woman who had worked in Human Resources had been shuffled to the New York office and a slender man with an easy smile and dimples that were sure to conquer the secretarial pool had appeared _My treasure._ That's what Seto had called her. There were even a notes in Seto's Day Runner: NEVER FIRE JAME!; Don't EVER discipline Jame, she might get ideas!; Give Jame a bonus; Clone Jame next Monday. Mokuba wondered if Seto had actually started that last one.

"Jame, I'm going home now." He smiled as she looked up at him with a distracted look. Her fingers pausing mid flip. "I have a sick friend I need to look in on."

She was already reaching for a pencil and a piece of paper. "Should I send a get well card and a gift for you?"

He shook his head. "No. Don't worry about it. But can you keep things under control here for a bit. I have to…" he stopped looking away. _How do you tell someone that you have to get your brother back from the Shadow Realm?_ "…take care of a few things for Seto."

"Oh, okay." She put the pencil and paper away, looking sad.

He wondered if she was sad about Seto or if she was sad that she couldn't organize a get well gift. He blinked as a vision of Jame organizing a Shadow Realm rescue popped into his head. _Frightening thought. What's most frightening is she'd probably do it._ He could imagine her checking things off a list. _One psycho yami. Check. One stressed out younger brother. Check. One all purpose survival kit. Check. One flashlight with extra batteries. Check. One tranquilizer gun to subdue psycho yami if he gets out of control. Check. One prepaid therapy program for everyone stupid enough to do this. Check._

He waved goodbye and walked down the hall. Just a quick stop at home to pick up a few things… _All purpose survival kit. Check…_ and he'd be on his way to get his brother back.

**Kaib…errr…Seth**

The library was a probably the driest, warmest place in the castle, which almost ensured that Seth could be found there. It also was the place that he was least likely to be pounced on by his hikari's beloved, which guaranteed that he could be found there, pretending to research a way out of the Shadow Realm. It wasn't that he didn't diligently search through every book, scroll, and scrap of paper that he could understand. He just had ran out of books, scrolls, and paper scraps to study and was now reduced to flipping through odd books that had interesting pictures of dragon anatomy and were written in a language that looked like a long series of circles inside of circles.

_Master, Master Jonouchi and Ryou want you to join them for lunch._ Shimo's mind voice nudged him out of a detailed diagram of the wing muscles of Petite Dragon.

_Koori is bringing me lunch in the library. Tell Jo that I'll see him at dinner._ Seth flipped the page trying to find a diagram of a larger dragon's wing.

_I'll tell him, but he's starting to worry about you. E'on thinks that he's getting suspicious. _Shimo sounded a bit worried.

_Hmmm. _Seth shook his head. _Tell E'on to keep listening. I'll see what I can do to keep him from guessing._

Seth closed the book and settled back into the wooden arm chair he sat in. Closing his eyes, he willed himself into the corridor between his soul room and his hikari's. He cast a longing look to his own door with it's carvings of entwined dragons but went into his hikari's far simpler door.

Seto's room looked pleasant enough. Tall windows that looked out across vistas of mountains; a few scattered games and gadgets that Seth couldn't identify; a rather large picture of a man, a woman and a child; another picture of Jonouchi; soft rugs; statures of the Blue Eyes; and a dart board with the pharaoh's picture on it took up most of the space in the room. Tucked in an almost unnoticeable corner, Seto was curled asleep on a bed.

He knelt next to the bed and gently brushed the hair out of his hikari's face. "Seto?"

His light's forehead wrinkled into small worried lines, and a fleeting feeling of anxiety whispered across his mind.

"Shhh, Shhhh. It's alright. I'll take care of it hikari. Sleep now." Seth moved to settle himself on the side of the bed to look at his hikari. Unlike the mortal body they presently shared, the damage done to Seto's soul couldn't be fixed with a few good meals and a long night's rest. Here in his soul room, the wounds showed far too clearly. His light was too thin, nearly skeletal. The fine bones of his face showed in sharp angles under pasty white skin. Seto's eyes had sunken back into bruised hollows. His arms and legs were hardly more than slender bones, covered in tight fragile skin. Collarbones, ribs and hip bones poked sharply up, looking like they were trying to cut their way out. And his skin. Everywhere on his light's fragile body, there were bruises, cuts, slashes. His poor hikari's back looked like someone had diligently tried to strip every inch of flesh off with a whip. His too slender neck and wrists were heavily bruised, as if someone had locked and left a collar and manacles tightly around them for too long.

Still, he was getting better. When Seth had first woken, groggily trying to figure out why he had been yanked out of his rest, he had stalked into his hikari's soul room ready to demand an explanation. He had found his light laying on the floor bleeding, broken, and nearly dead, yet still trying desperately to act, to protect his lover, to return to his brother, to do something, even when he had less then nothing to give them anymore.

Seth still couldn't forgive himself for that.

_Master, Master Jonouchi is going to eat lunch with you._ Shimo's voice sounded a trifle surprised.

_Is Ryou with him?_ Seth caressed his hikari's cheek fondly, then leaned over to kiss his forehead.

_No Master._

Silently summoning Kisara and Koori, Seth stepped out of Seto's soul room took possession of the body. He flipped the book about dragon anatomy closed, and got up to place it back on the shelf, as Jonouchi walked into the library with an annoyed, determined look on his face.

Seth fought away a smile. His light's lover really was too cute. "I said I'd see you at dinner."

Jo's eyes narrowed accusingly as he gestured around the empty table.

Seth arched an eyebrow. "Koori's bringing the food." He looked speculatively at the blond as he pulled a book on magical barriers off the shelf. He'd read it before, but it was a good prop to distract Jo. And distracting Jo was becoming an issue. Not only was his light's lover too cute for his own good, he was also far too skillful as a lover. Seth had nearly caved in and taken the boy this morning after waking to find Jo's far too talented fingers curled around his shaft and his deliciously clever mouth working it's way down his body to join those fingers. He'd frantically summoned E'on to come in and save him from himself and Jonouchi. There were defiantly times when being a dragon tamer came in handy. Unfortunately.

Jo came over to glare at him. Seth sighed and lifted his hand to run it through the light, silken hair of his light's lover. "Don't worry about me, Jo."

Soft honey brown eyes frowned slightly as Jonouchi reached out and ran his finger across a still prominent collarbone.

"With you and three dragons watching over me, do you really think I'm going to be able to miss even a mid-day snack?" Seth grumbled, then leaned forward and pressed a kiss against Jo's lips. "Now, if you need something to keep you busy, how about this?" Seth smirked lightly to himself, as the blond licked his lips. "You need to start talking again."

Jo stepped back looking a bit frightened.

Seth arched one eyebrow. "You really didn't think I hadn't noticed, did you?"

Jo turned away. His shoulders slumping.

Seth reached out and turned him back around. "Jo, you need to try and talk. You talk to E'on. I just want you to talk to me."

Jonouchi wouldn't meet his eyes.

"I'll even give you a bit of incentive." Seth pulled Jo closer, luxuriating in the feel of the slender, tense body pressing against his own. "When you talk, I'll get rid of the dragons and…"

Jonouchi suddenly looked very, very interested and…predatory. Seth moaned to himself. He wanted his hikari's lover to talk and be well, but he had really hoped for time…lots of time. Time for Seto to regain his strength. Time to get out of the Shadow Realm and give himself a bit of breathing room. A quick peek into his hikari's memory had shown him that the other world had tons of distractions that would keep the blond busy for months, if need be.

Before Jo could end his silence and pounce on him, Koori and Kisara appeared with lunch. The blond quickly retreated, biting his lip and looking uncertain.

_If I haven't told you lately, I love you two._ Seth whispered into their minds.

_You say that now Master,_ Kisara laughed back,_ but just wait till Mahado comes back. You'll get all grumpy again._

_That was justified. I fell over the two of you on the stairs._ Seth dropped the book on the table and sat down, gesturing Jonouchi to join him. _Seeing my entire life, then my hikari's flash before my eyes made me a bit irritable._

_You don't even want to know what they do out on the rooftops, Master._ Koori's voice rumbled with silent laughter. _Little E'on won't be asking too many questions about sex anymore._

Kisara set her dishes down on the table and poked Koori.

The larger dragon arched an eyebrow back as he set his dishes down too. He then turned to Seth. "Master, Shimo is bringing the rest of the food and I believe E'on is bringing cups and drinks."

Seth nodded. "Alright." He turned to where Jo was still standing looking uncertain. "You aren't hungry?"

Chewing on his lip worriedly, Jonouchi sat down next to Seth.

**Bakura**

He was getting tired of the pharaoh and Marik looking at him. They seemed to only have two expressions, pitying or assessing. He wasn't sure which one was more insulting. The pity, which he didn't need. He could go find his tenshi just fine without all the excess sympathy. Or the assessment, he wasn't going to turn into a raving mad man, at least not quite yet. It would take a few days before he started deteriorating without his light to keep him steady.

The problem though was to not just the pity and the overly worried looks, it was getting the fuck away from those idiots. If the pharaoh wasn't watching him, then Marik was, or worse Marik's hikari who looked so determinedly normal that Bakura was waiting for him to break out a cardigan and a pipe and call for the Beaver to behave himself. Which of course made him angry, because sitting and watching Leave it to Beaver on late night TV and giggling at Lumpy was Ryou's secret vice.

Malik was the one watching him right now. He guessed that the pharaoh was probably with his light. Yugi looked about ready to self destruct last time Bakura caught a glimpse of him. Marik was probably roving around terrorizing the general populace and thanking the gods that it hadn't been Malik who got a one way trip to the far reaches of the Shadow Realm.

_Ryou, I'm coming. Just stay safe till I get to you._ Bakura closed his eyes concentrating on sending his thoughts to his light. He didn't know if Ryou could hear him, but he hoped he did. _I'll be there soon. Just be strong tenshi. You can do it._

"You want to watch Captive Passions?" Malik held a video cassette out to him. "There were a whole bunch of these here."

He shook his head and opened his eyes. "Ryou and I will watch them later." He wondered it the hikari got the hint, but seeing the pitying look in his eyes, he decided that being a dimwitted ass was a trait that both hikari and yami shared. _Isn't togetherness wonderful._

"Okay, uh, how about watching…uh…." The blond hikari turned and started rummaging through the stack of DVDs. "Something Wicked This Way Comes?"

"Two idiot kids kill the only cool thing that ever came to their little burg? Thanks, I'll pass." Bakura rolled his eyes and stretched out on the sofa, at least as far as the handcuffs would let him. Damn the pharaoh and his sneaky tricks. And damn him for magicking the cuffs into being un-pickable. It was going to take him hours to unlock them.

A light rapping on the door caused the blond hikari to jump nervously. "Uh…who's there?" He whispered so faintly that even Bakura had trouble hearing him.

"How the fuck should I know? Just go over to the door and find out." Bakura growled.

Malik looked like a rabbit caught in an oncoming car's headlights. "But what if…"

"Do you want me to go?" Bakura held up one cuffed wrist.

Malik edged warily over to the door and looked out the small peep hole. "Oh, Mokuba!" He quickly unbolted the door and let the kid in. "Hey, great to see you. You want to watch a movie?"

Mokuba smiled cheerily. "Hi Malik. Hi Bakura" He looked around the apartment, and nodded at Bakura. "I thought I'd come over and let you off the hook." He held up a briefcase. "I gotta do some paperwork and thought I might as well do it here, and let you go have fun. No use having two of us sitting inside doing nothing."

Bakura growled and thumped back onto the couch._ Great. I've just been reduced to not only needing a babysitter, but I'm nothing as well. Just shove me back in the ring and let me die of humiliation. Every member of the thieves' guild is probably laughing their asses off in the Land of the Dead right now._

Malik looked like Mokuba had just reveled that he was actually Santa and Christmas was coming early this year. The blond hikari was out the door yelling a goodbye before Mokuba had even set his briefcase down at his feet. The kid smiled and waved. "Bye Malik. See you later." He then walked over to the couch and leaned on the back of it, smiling down at the tomb robber. "Have you ever heard of the program Let's Make a Deal?"

* * *

I owe you guys a lemon. It was supposed to be right here with Yugi and Yami having a bit of "quality time", but I've been taking too much time as it is getting this to you. I'll try to get it in the first thing in the next chapter.

* * *

Review and share your thoughts! Do you guys mind a, so far, lemonless story? Or do you need that citrusy goodness?

**Media Miner. org**

**Dragonlady222:** Yes, that was not one of Yami's better moments. Yuai however, wasn't Yami's wife, just a friend. If you look at the scene where she and Yami are playing mancala, you will notice that she's married to Ledowr and just visiting with Yami. Should I take time to clarify that a bit more?

**Daebird:** I knew when I tossed Seth into the pit of chaos that is my story that you'd be happy. He actually wasn't going to identify himself for a couple more chapters, but I was noticing that everyone just accepted that Kaiba, after nearly having a complete breakdown, could just bounce right back to normal with a good meal and some rest, so I had to let everyone in on the secret a bit earlier then I planned. About the movie, I think Anubis was in the pharaoh's time, but I'm not ready to break out the DVD and check. It was enough trauma to listen to them slaughter Kaiba's voice the first time, I need to recover before I have to listen to that again.

**The Panasonic Princess: **I will promise to keep writing fan fiction, probably not another huge arc like this one, but I do love playing with the stories and characters. Lately, I've been eyeing the mini fic contest and thinking evil thoughts about Sesshoumaru from Inuyasha… What can I say? I'm hooked. Thanks for all the praise blushes. I try hard for you guys. Thanks!

**Fan fiction. net**

**Dragonlady222:** Seto, as you see, is going to be taking a nap for awhile, but there's still one Kaiba roving around causing havoc. Go Mokie!

**Clarity2199:** I hope this chapter helped a bit. Kaiba was in reference to who everyone (the reader) assumed was sitting there, but it was Seth all the time. Kallon, Ledowr and Yuai already knew that they were dealing with Seth. So, Seto is sleeping in his soul room recovering from all the terrible things I dragged him through. Seth is filling in, and trying very hard not to let Jo pounce on him.

**Hikari Raine: **Yes, come and adopt a sweet little Ryou! An adorable addition to your family. He also comes with a knife wielding yami who wants his tenshi back NOW! All doctors fees and funeral expenses are your responsibility… Good guess, but not quite :P

**He'smypuppy: **Try "Joey's Little Red Eyes", on media miner. It isn't complete, but it's fun. Seto's very cute. Another cute one is "A Love Hate Relationship with Spring" or something very close to that title over on MM too. It's only a few chapters though. Or Being Dead Ain't Easy by D. Draggy, here at FF. It's angsty, but very cute. Jou and Kaiba are generally paired in tragedies, which is sort of interesting, in a sick twisted way. There was one, which I can't remember right now where Jo's the dominant in the relationship and Seto's a very believable uke. I'll let you know if I find it again. Welcome aboard the good ship Chaos! We have a full line of amentities in this fanfic: twisted bad guys are up on the Ledo deck, a snuggly complement of hikaris and yamis are in the forward lounge, and you might wish to stay away from Neptune deck, since four over protective dragons and their masters have taken that over….

**Erm:** Who said that anyone but the bad guys, a few fish, some unnamed schoolmates of Mokuba's, and a unfortunate Hungry Burger have died? There's been some torture, a bit of Shadow Magic driving people insane, a few unexpected vacations in shadowy places, a squished Celtic Guardian, some terrible fashion goofs, and a stressed out CEO, but the good guys are still hanging in there. I'm glad you like this. It's been fun to write.


	14. Lovers

Disclaimer: Yugi-oh is the property of Kazuki Takahashi, who is a genius.

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

**_Authoress looks at scheduled plot and the amount of things that haven't been accomplished and sighs. She hefts her chubby and ever growing story and walks into the land of the muses. _**Okay muses, the story needs to go on a diet. We need to hurry it up. It's scheduled for 20 chapters and we're heading for an overtime. Any suggestions. _**Muses hold up list of probable casualties**. _Eww. That many huh? **_Muses hold up list of plot revisions._** A freak traffic accident involving a fish kills the bad guy…ummm…alright. Seto and Jo get home by…the Shadow Realm gets annexed by New York and they put in a subway station?...well…okay, but it's a scary subway station. Bakura rescues Ryou by practicing tantric sex with a passing yogi?...hmmm…I'm not seeing it. Oh, its not a yogi; it's Yogi, the Bear….Still not seeing it, but I'll do it…How about Yami and Yugi…Oh…well…yes, I see…Domino City gets wiped out by a falling meteor that turns everyone into tomatoes and a passing Italian chef dices everyone into a fine puree and opens a five star restaurant. Well, that does solve the entire plot problem…**_Authoress looks at her story, then looks at the revisions._ **I really need new muses… Anyone got any I can rent…

Ps. Yes, my wrist went bad again, so things have slowed down :(It's taken me three weeks just to type this section, now three fingers on my left hand are numb and I'm back in the brace. I'll try to keep updating on the first week of the month. Sorry of the slowdown.

* * *

**Psyche**

Chapter Fifteen: Lovers

**OCs**

**Ahmose: (Egyptian for: The moon is born)** Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on**: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame**: Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon**: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara**: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori**: **(Japanese for: Ice)** The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr**: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be.He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt. She is Ahmose's mother, which will be covered later.

**Shimo**: **(Japanese for: Frost)** The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai**: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

* * *

**Yugi and Yami**

Yami flipped a page, trying not to disturb his still sleeping aibou. He hadn't realized when he pulled Yugi back to bed that he'd be pinned beneath his little light for… he looked over at the clock… seven hours and twenty nine… make that thirty minutes. He had plotted opening gambits for Duel Monsters, thought over his upcoming oral report in history class, and was now rereading an ancient, tattered copy of Duelist Monthly that he'd found behind the bedside stand. After reading the not so thrilling victory of Weevile Underwood and his bugs over a small time duelist from Murdo, North Dakota, who looked like someone had accidentally smacked him a few too many times on the head with a iron frying pan causing him to be a true flat top, he yawned.

He boredly dropped the magazine and looked longingly at the shelves of books that were mocking him from across the room. They'd been taunting him all day, nearly shouting their glee that he couldn't reach even the smallest, slimmest, most insignificant copy of _Dueling for Fun and Profit_, by Mia Valantina. He wanted that book. He wanted to see what this Mia Valantina had to say, and if by any chance Mai Valentine either had the world's worst pen name, or was soon to rip the hair out of some scheming, wanna-be. He was betting on someone going bald himself, but until he reached that book… Futilely, he stretched his hand towards it. Since his arm hadn't grow the requisite five feet, the book stayed safely out of reach.

_Yugi. Please little one, just move a bit._ He wiggled experimentally, but like the rest of that day's experiments in shifting his hikari, it failed. Yugi just latched on more tightly, nearly burrowing into his chest. _Aibou…_he stretched out for the bookcase again…_I just want…_stretch, only another four and a half feet…_that…_the book jeered at him…_book._ With a dispirited sigh, he let his arm flop limply to the side of the bed.

The books silently blew raspberries at him. He was sure the book _Zen of Dueling _mooned him. The slim volume of _Power of Dueling_ by one S. Kaiba, sneered. _Monster Mastery_ giggled.

He snarled back, whispering threateningly, "Just you wait. He can't sleep forever, and then I'll get you."

_The Art of Dueling_ by S. Hadi, sniffed disapprovingly.

"Honda…" Yugi snuffled softly against his throat. "Tell Jo no more marshmallows. 'm full."

"Yugi. Wake up, aibou." Yami wiggled again, only to be clung to even harder. He was sure he was going to have bruises. "Aibou, it's time to get up."

"N..no. I don' wanna. I' fell on d' groun.." Yugi's face squished against Yami's neck. "N' more sssss'mmmmooorrrrsssssss."

His light's semi-coherent mumblings reminded Yami that he hadn't managed to get breakfast. His stomach whined piteously. "Yugi, my light, please, LET ME GO!"

He instantly felt bad, as Yugi shrieked in fear and slammed himself against the wall. His wide amethyst eyes darting around, terrified and confused.

"Oh, aibou. I'm sorry." Yami reached out and pulled his light into his arms. "It's all right."

"Yami, what ha-pened?" Yugi quivered against him. His voice cracking in fear. "Is it here? Is it?"

"No, little one. Nothing is here." Yami rocked him gently. "I'm sorry aibou. I am so sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you."

Yugi nodded, rubbing his face against his chest. "It's okay, Yami. I…I just had…a bad dream."

"About s'mores?"

Yugi shook his head and looked up at him. "You…you're okay, right?" His small hands trembled as he started to look for wounds on his yami.

"I'm fine, love." Yami caught his hands and pulled him closer. "No one is going to hurt you. No one is going to hurt me. I promise."

"Ryou…" Yugi shook his head, but Yami cut him off with a soft kiss.

"Enough." Yami kissed him again, more forcefully. "Ryou will be fine. You do NOT have to worry about him."

"But…"

Yami sighed. "No. No but. Ryou will be fine and we will find the person who is trying to harm our friends and make sure he never tries it again." Yami left out some of the gorier details of the plan. As much as he tended to… disagree with Marik's…excesses…after discovering that whoever was doing this had drawn in Kaiba and Yuai, threatened Mokuba, very possibly had a part in Jonouchi's death, as well as harming Ryou, he was willing to not only go along with those excesses, he had a few ideas of his own. He hadn't been stuck in the shadowy half life of the Puzzle for five millennia without getting a hang for those excesses himself. The only real difference between him and the others was really superficial. A bit of charm, a half remembered feeling of empathy, a worn, frayed thread of self control, and a faded, tattered scrap of emotion that Yugi had managed to patch back into love. However, threaten Yugi, harm his friends, manage to truly anger him and the threadbare reality of those remnants became obvious. Marik, with less then two decades of experience was little more than a novice. Give him time, maybe a thousand years of hanging out with the blasted ground cracking beneath his feet, while lost souls shrieked insanely in his ears and he'd get the hang of being truly excessive. What was getting a few hieroglyphics carved in your back compared to thousands of years of living in the capital of gibbering insanity with the only company being your most hated enemy? "Hush, Yugi. All will be well."

Yugi looked up at him, trying to smile bravely. It was a good try, so Yami kissed him.

"You shouldn't worry so much aibou." He nuzzled Yugi's hair, feeling his little one start hiccupping in small sobs.

He suddenly remembered something Bakura once told him. They had been sitting on a picnic table outside of school, waiting for their lights. Earlier, Bakura had talked him into going down to the poorer side of town for a bit of fun. He'd remembered Jonouchi's former gang mates that had been so _pleasant _to him, and they had spent a lovely afternoon showing those morons the uses their stun guns could really be put to. Bakura had, after the festivities, gotten into a bit of a brawl with a passing Volvo and had looked a bit bloody and tattered, though nothing as bad as what the Volvo looked like. Ryou, however, had taken one look at his yami and burst into hysterical tears.

"He's been watery all week." Bakura had grumbled, jumping down off his perch on the table top. "I swear to Ma'at, he's really a girl in a boy's body. I'm going have to fuck him silly if I want any quiet."

"I don't suppose you've tried comforting him." Yami remembered rolling his eyes at the thief.

Bakura had snorted. "Tried that. Didn't work. Sometimes you've just got to fuck your hikari till their eyes cross." He'd sauntered over to his light, "Don't expect to see him at school tomorrow."

"Well, I've tried everything else…" Yami muttered, half annoyed that he was reduced to taking the thief's advice.

_-Lemon deleted for FF. net-_

**Yuai**

She hadn't changed. Thank all the good spirits, she hadn't changed. After five thousand years of being able to do nothing but watch, he had been worried that when he finally got her back, she would be hurt, broken, changed. She wasn't. She hadn't. Her memory was a bit spotty. She had wobbled uncertainly those first few days back, shifting from child like fascination, to traumatized teen, to his confident , laughing Yuai, who matched him snide joke for snide joke and cuddled in his arms purring like a kitten.

"Are you listening to me?" She halted her pacing and stood glaring at him. She'd been off on some rant about her former body and her mortal friends, pacing around the castle's solar, blatantly avoiding the entire court she was supposed to be listening to.

"Did you say anything worth listening to?" He grinned, treasuring the look of fury that flickered across her face. He'd watched over her soulless body for too long, watching for any tiny reaction, to not appreciate the vivid emotions that now showed so plainly.

"Jerk." She whirled away, pacing across the room. Her dress glittering and swishing behind her.

Kallon looked up from the scroll he was reading and arched an inquisitive eyebrow at him. Kallon wasn't fooled. He knew. He dragged him out of that room, away from Yuai's still form too many times.

Ledowr smirked in return and went back to watching her worry.

"How the hell is my body walking around and talking when I'm not in it?" She paced from one end of the solar to the other, biting her lip and frowning. "It's my body!"

Kallon nodded, "Yes, dearest. It is your body. It shouldn't be walking around without you."

Yuai, still nibbling on her lip, nodded and continued her pacing. "That's what I thought."

"Maybe it got possessed." Ryou, who was sitting quietly looking out the window, suggested. "It had the Millennium Eye. Maybe it got possessed by that."

She frowned slightly. "Can an item possess a body?"

Ryou nodded. "Sure. Bakura possessed me a lot."

Ledowr grinned, "Is possessed really the appropriate word? How about fu…"

Ryou blushed and Yuai twirled to glare.

"You…" She marched over to him. "You are…" She hissed softly.

He grinned, loving that she was standing there, hissing at him like a small, fluffy kuribo. "Yes?"

"I'm trying to find a comparison that wouldn't insult pond slime."

He laughed and stretched in his chair, making the move as sexually provocative as possible. She narrowed her eyes and whisked away again, this time pretending to ignore him. He grinned watching her. She was more aware of him then any other person in the room. He knew it. She knew it. After being together for so many millennia, it was the pretence that counted though. He was close to the edge of truly annoying her, so he readjusted himself and pulled his mind into focus. A hard feat, when all he really wanted was to just watch her, listen to her talk to him, smile at him, growl, play, laugh…

"Let's just assume, just for the moment, your old body is walking around without you." He gave a martyred sigh, as if joining the conversation was a punishment he was only enduring for her sake. He looked over at Kallon. "Was it alive when you left."

Kallon shook his head. "I must admit, I did not check."

"Okay, so it could have been alive." Yuai grimaced. "That's a bit creepy."

"Oh, you get used to it after awhile." Ryou shrugged. "My body's been alive without me now and again. They keep working for a couple days, even if no one's in them."

Yuai blinked. "Why was your body…"

Ryou blushed redder then before. Ledowr wondered where the kid stored all that color. For a small, nearly alabaster teen, he could certainly turn an amazing shade of brilliant red.

She shook her head. "I have a feeling I don't want to know."

Ledowr smirked, "I do."

She barely flicked a glance at him. He was getting closer to that invisible line of annoyance. Kallon was now giving him pointed looks. _Okay, okay. I get the message. _"Seriously." He waved a hand toward Ryou. "I am interested. It might give us a clue. I don't think we need a blow by blow of his sex life, but the mechanics of getting in and out of a human body might be relevant."

Ryou looked thoughtful. "I really didn't do it myself. Bakura did it for me. He would just pull me out of my soul room and we'd leave. When it was time to go back, we would just be back in the corridor between our soul rooms and I'd wake up."

"How did if feel?" Kallon tapped his finger on the arm of his chair.

"It didn't feel like anything. We just went away and then we'd come back." Ryou shrugged.

"That is defiantly different from my experience. Every time was painful." Yuai went back to pacing.

Kallon pursed his lips and looked over at the white haired hikari. "I take it Bakura didn't do this too often."

"No," Ryou shook his head. "Only when he really wanted me to see something."

"His yami has probably been shielding him." Kallon sighed. "It most likely felt the same, but the thief took the pain for his light."

"You mean…it hurt…" Soft, chocolate brown eyes widened, and tears threatened, as the hikari realized. "Oh. Oh, Yami…"

"But we have no proof. At least until Bakura gets his albino ass over here." Ledowr slumped further in his chair.

"Do you think he will?" Tears still edged Ryou's voice.

Yuai went over to her friend and hugged him. "He's probably just busy tripping over the dead bodies between you and him. He'll be here soon."

Angelic brown eyes narrowed dangerously. "He had better not be tripping over any dead bodies. He had better be behaving himself. I warned him the last time that if he ever…"

Yuai stepped back, looking startled. "Last time? Ah…it was a joke Ryou."

"I think I liked it better when he was blushing." Ledowr arched an eyebrow. "Doe-y eyed in love to accessory to mass murder in .05 seconds. Impressive."

"Okay, so we have at least gained the knowledge that a human body does survive, at least a small amount of time without its soul." Kallon bravely tried to drag things back on course, but Yuai was now warily watching the white haired light from behind her husband's chair and Ledowr was looking a tad…overprotective. Kallon grinned. _The things you show my friend, when you don't realize your doing it…_ "Which gives someone the opportunity to have possessed the cast off body. Now, why would someone do that?"

Yuai frowned. "I seemed…I mean it, it seemed to be following Bakura around. Could it have been after him? Or maybe Ryou?"

"It said my yami needed to be distracted. That he got to be a bother." Ryou tipped his head, trying to think. "It also mentioned Kaiba. It said, "Say hello to Kaiba for me."

"Interesting." Kallon frowned thoughtfully. "But why is it doing this? With young, Jonouchi and Kiaba, I believed all the attacks were focusing on them. However, if it still needs a distraction…"

"Mokuba?" Yuai gasped. "It's after Mokie."

"But why?" Ledowr shook his head. "If it wanted a mind slave, Kaiba…" he halted, his eyes flicking towards Ryou. "Well, it wasn't like he was in the best shape when he got here."

"True, but we are now speculating. There is no proof it is after young Mokuba." Kallon waved his hand dismissively. "It could just as easily be after Jonouchi's sister Serenity. Without Jonouchi or Kaiba there to protect her, she is just as vulnerable as the child. Probably more so since the pharaoh isn't well acquainted with her."

"Well, let's go spy on it then." Yuai walked to the door. "After all, we've got a handy birdbath of sight. Might as well use it and figure out what's going on."

Kallon got to his feet and walked toward the door. "It's not a birdbath. It's a mirror."

Yuai looped her arm through is and gently steered him down the hall towards the room where the birdbath of sight was kept.

"It was once the prized possession of an elfin queen. She kept it in her garden." Kallon sounded sulky.

"Yes, in her garden. I'm sure the birds appreciated that." Yuai's voice soothed with a hint of laughter.

Ledowr grinned as Kallon's voice floated plaintively back to him. "Why does nobody believe me?"

**Bakura and Mokuba**

Bakura shrugged his pack over his shoulder, checked to make sure the kid wasn't freaking out too badly and tromped into the swirling shadows. He wasn't entirely sure where to begin looking for his hikari, but he wasn't worried. Ryou was his light, the other half of his soul. They would naturally gravitate toward each other. A trick that helped many times in the past when one fool or another would try to "save" Ryou from him.

"Whoa, this is too cool. Can you teach me how to get here by myself?" Mokuba was rubber necking around like a geeky tourist.

"Sure. It's not hard." Bakura shrugged casually, but inwardly gloated over the look on Kaib… oh yeah…the priest was dead, or good as. Well, it would still piss off the pharaoh. Maybe he could give group lessons and get all the pharaoh's little hangers-on to start popping in and out of the Shadows.

"Coolness." Mokuba grinned, still looking around. It was kind of… well…honestly…scary here. He learned in the first five seconds in the Shadow Realm not to look at his feet. Looking down, was the same as looking straight ahead. A mass of coiling shadows receding off into some unimaginable distance. But otherwise, it was cool, a bit bland, maybe bordering on dull, but the whole magic thing added a certain spice to the otherwise yawn inspiring landscape.

"Kid, I told you not to fall behind or I'd leave you." Bakura called.

Mokuba looked around and found that the thief had gained a respectable lead. He jogged quickly to catch up. "Where do you think Ryou and big brother are?"

The yami shrugged and kept stomping forward. "Someplace."

"Should we split up and search for them?" Mokuba eyed a wisp of shadow uncertainly.

"No point."

"Yeah, the lack of anything like landmarks might cause a problem." The kid narrowed his eyes and started thinking hard, as he tagged along at the thief's heels.

Bakura thanked a few gods for the moment of silence. While he was willing to drag the brat along with him, if for nothing else then he'd have someone to throw at hungry monsters, he didn't need a running monolog. The border that they were crossing through was relatively safe, few if any monsters got this close to the mortal realm, but as soon as they got deeper into the shadows, he'd need to keep alert or little Mokuba's trip to the Shadow was going to be excruciatingly brief.

"Can you sense Ryou?" Mokuba asked, ruining Bakura's moment.

"No."

Silence wrapped around them again. The shadows twirled into spirals and pillars. Their plodding feet fell silently to the shadow floor. The only sound was Mokuba's soft breath and the soft brush of cloth against cloth.

"You know. This place is boring." Mokuba sounded disappointed.

"I've thought that too." A strong, silky voice murmured close by.

Bakura froze. It had been millennia since he last heard that voice, but he hadn't forgotten. "Mahaado." He whirled around, searching for the priest. "Where the fuck are you asshole."

"Time has not improved your temper or vocabulary." A dark shape slid out of the shadows and the black and purple Dark Magician came into view, grinning at the thief. "Enjoying the Ring yet?"

"Fucking bastard." Bakura glared at the dark haired creature. "You didn't tell me it would suck my soul out and trap me forever with only that shit-faced pharaoh."

The priest snickered, "You didn't ask." He turned and bowed gracefully to Mokuba. "Greetings. You must be Mokuba. I've seen you many times recently."

"Wait a second. What the fuck do you mean, I didn't ask?" Bakura vaguely wished he could grow fangs, just so he could tear the priest's throat out with them. "You condemn me to an eternal hell, and I didn't ask?"

Mahaado arched his eyebrows and smirked. "If you remember, I did warn you the Ring was evil, but you ignored me and then we got busy." The smirk grew. "It is not my fault I was too busy dying to gasp out, "Oh, by the way, thanks for taking the Ring. It's a bit cursed. I really appreciate your sacrificing your immortal soul, and saving me from spending the next few thousand years stuck inside of it. I'm leaving now to do what I've always dreamed, study magic without pesky interruptions, become a powerful magician, and find a home where it's cool and green. Ta.""

Mokuba watched Bakura actually start snarling and growling. He was sure that foam was starting to form on the edges of his lips. He stepped forward, "Hi… uh, nice to meet you. I don't suppose you've seen my brother. Yami says he looks just like…"

"Seth." The Dark Magician nodded. "Yes, I've seen him. He's fine, as are young Jonouchi and Ryou."

That snapped Bakura out of his fantasy of chewing the priest's limbs off. "Ryou?"

Mahaado ignored him. "I was sent to take you to them." He waved back where he came from and a large white figure suddenly loomed in the dancing shadows.

Mokuba gasped. One of his brother's dragons sinuously moved closer, causing the darkness to melt away. "Blue Eyes."

The dragon bowed its head, looking at him out of one sapphire eye.

Mahaado stepped over, next to the dragon, which crouched down, "If you will, she will take us to where everyone is."

The thief eyed the dragon warily. He never liked dragons. It was probably those weird dreams he kept having of Slypher chasing him through amusement parks where the rides kept saying he was too short to ride. He blamed it on Yugi and Ryou's penchant for watching old Disney flicks on rainy days. He also blamed the pharaoh, but then, he blamed the pharaoh for most everything, so he barely counted that.

The dragon cooed softly as Mokuba settled on her back. The priest swung up behind him and the dragon stood again.

"Hey, aren't you forgetting me?" Bakura reluctantly slogged forward, closer to the overly white, overly clawed, armored and toothed beast.

Mahaado started smirking again. "Forget you? Never."

It took Bakura less then five seconds to fervently wish they had forgotten him, as the dragon pounced forward, snatched him up in a hind claw and whooshed into the shadowy sky like a meteor. "You fucking freak… when I…. aaahhhhggg… that's a mountain… watch the fuck out….Mahaado, I swear, I'll figure out how to trap you in the Rod with Marik, you bastard, and you get to …. Shit! We're heading for that treeeeeee…"

* * *

Review and tell me where to find new muses…

**FF. net**

Sorry folks, I'm not allowed to give individual review responses here any more, but I do read each one of your reviews and love them. Thanks!


	15. Findings

**Happy New Year** to all my readers! I send you all good wishes and hopes for many, many great fanfics to keep you happy!

AN: Please remember that Honda got new hair in Emergence. Spiky hair and a motor cycle helmet never made sense to me…

**Psyche**

Chapter Fifteen: Findings

* * *

**OCs**

**Ahmose: (Egyptian for: The moon is born)** Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on**: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame**: Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon**: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara**: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori**: **(Japanese for: Ice)** The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr**: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be.He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt. She is Ahmose's mother, which will be covered later.

**Shimo**: **(Japanese for: Frost)** The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai**: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

* * *

**Jonouchi**

_A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do._ Jonouchi eyed the prone form of his lover hungrily. Kaiba was laying on a thick blanket in the remotest part of the castles sprawling gardens. His shoulders were propped against the exposed roots of a slender, purple flowered tree, a thick book lay open on his chest and he was sound asleep. And not a dragon in sight.

Jonouchi grinned, licking his lips predatorily. The tunic that Koori had shown up with that morning had crunched up exposing the flat plane of Kaiba's stomach. The breeches, that had already hung low, had shifted slightly downwards, exposing a generous, and tempting, curve of pelvic bones that blatantly teased his deprived hormones with naughty insinuations, and memories of just how those hips could move under the right circumstances.

He checked carefully around again for any draconic presences, then crept forwards towards his prey. He knew that Kisara had disappeared earlier to go meet Mahaado near the boarders of this world and the other. E'on and Shimo had raced off after a heard of niwatori that had wandered too close to the city and it's hungry dragons. Only Koori was unaccounted for.

As he slunk around a bush to prepare to pounce on his beloved, he approvingly noted that there was a basket nearby with what looked to be the remains of a meal neatly stacked in it. He paused, narrowing his eyes. Only one of the Blue Eyes would bring Kaiba a meal. An unfortunate Beaver Warrior had tried it last week, only to have his tail singed by an outraged Shimo. Kaiba was theirs to take care of and no one was going to infringe on their right to shove food down Kaiba's throat five times a day. Not even Kaiba.

Jo carefully eyed the half congealed gravy on one of the plates and decided that Koori hadn't been there for awhile. Jo considered the chances of Koori returning to retrieve the basket, then decided to just pounce. He edged closer, licking his lips at the delicious sight of his love's slumbering body. Already anticipating what he would start with. _The direct approach…_ He smirked at the soft, temptingly exposed skin. _It wouldn't take much to get those pants off…_

"Peep."

Jo froze, looking suspiciously around. Koori defiantly didn't go peep, so he shrugged and went back to planning the fastest way to get rid of those pants.

"PEEP! Peep."

Something bonked him lightly on the back of his head. Whirling around he came face to face with…a Petite Dragon, and not just one, there seemed to be an entire flock of them bobbing around the branches of the purple trees.

"PEEP. Peep peep PEEP peep. PEEP PEEP peep Peep." They all floated happily around gently rising and falling as they wove around the branches of the trees. Big smiles on their tiny faces as they bobbled along playing some kind of game.

_Shoo. Scram. Get lost._ He tried to bat one away that had started to nuzzle his hair. A couple more bobbed down to eye his shirt.

"Peep peep PEEP peep peep Peep Peep." A tiny dragon caught the edge of his sleeve in it's mouth and gave it a tug. Another was trying to wiggle it's way up his shirt.

"Aaahhhgggg." He shoved it away and bolted towards the castle with a soft, peeping cloud of tiny dragons floating along after him like a string of cheerful balloons.

Seth opened one eye and smirked.

_Master, that was cruel._ Koori's voice admonished as he walked up the path and collected the basket.

_At least he almost said something._ Seth closed his eyes again.

_Screaming because you have a Petite Dragon up your shirt is not saying something._ Koori hefted the basket, looking down at his master with fond amusement.

_True. _Seth sighed replaying the sight of Jonouchi standing over him licking his lips. _Sad but true. If he had spoken I would have been obligated to not only get the little one out of his shirt, but him too. Oh well, maybe next time._

**Yami, Yugi, and company**

Marik glowered at the couch where the Tomb Robber should have been laying, growling, and snarling threats at them. "Well, didn't that work."

Yami shrugged and lifted the opened cuff. A small key fell out of the keyhole and plinked to the floor. "Are you sure Mokuba was with him?"

Malik nodded. "He came over after work and said he'd stay with the thief."

"Anyone want to guess where they are now?" Honda plopped onto a chair, running his hands through his shaggy hair.

Yugi was sitting, cuddled protectively between Anzu and Mai and looking a little bleary eyed. "I just can't believe that Bakura would…"

"Kidnap Mokuba and haul him off to the Shadow Realm?" Honda shrugged. "I can see it."

Mai leaned forward and picked up the key. "I doubt there was much kidnapping done."

Yami snarled and stomped over to glare out the window. "We should have been more careful. We knew the Tomb Robber was going to go after Ryou. Now Mokuba has been dragged into this as well."

Malik shrugged and walked towards the kitchen. "He's a Kaiba. Where one is, the other shows up sooner or later. For all we know he dragged Bakura along." He opened the door and looked back at his friends. "Anyone want some hot chocolate? It's got marshmallows."

A small chorus of yeses were mumbled.

"So now what?" Anzu snuggled Yugi closer as he finally started losing the battle with sleep and slumped against her shoulder snoring cutely.

"Marik and I are going after them." Yami growled glaring at passing strangers on the street below, many of which had a sudden unexplainable urge to run home quickly.

"And me." Malik stuck his head through the kitchen door.

"Me too." Honda nodded determinedly.

Yugi made a little snort and woke up a bit. "Don't forget me. I wanna come."

"If you think we're staying while all you manly men go out saving the day, forget it." Mai smiled sassily. "Someone's got to be able to talk to any intelligent beings we meet."

"There is no fucking way!" Marik snarled, glowering at the group in front of him. Yami gave a grunt of assent.

Mai smiled sweetly at them, snapped the forgotten handcuff around Marik's wrist, then turned to her girlfriend, "Sic him, love."

Anzu nodded and stood up. "Marik, Yami, we are friends and we will always stand together. For when it gets darkest, that is when our friendship should shine the brightest."

Mai grabbed Yugi and Marik and disappeared into the kitchen. Yami bolted, only to be tackled by Honda.

"Get off, or I'll mind crush you." Yami squirmed trying to get away.

"Sorry, can't hear you. Got earplugs in my ears." Honda held on to the squirming pharaoh.

"…no matter what the odds, our friendship will shine through…"

Marik started to chew on his wrist.

Yami wailed, "Get off. Get off. For the love of Ra!"

Ten minutes later, eerie quiet came from the living room. Malik, Yugi and Mai poked their heads out and surveyed the damage. Anzu was sitting placidly in the rocking chair by the window, talking to Honda in a hushed voice. Marik sat against the couch tugging mindlessly at his cuffed wrist with a look of complete horror on his face. Yami was curled on the couch sniffling softly.

Mai looked down at Yugi.

"He's actually very sensitive." He whispered and went to cuddle his traumatized other.

Malik wiggled out the door after him. "Mine's not. He's just an idiot." But he uncuffed his darkness and snuggled him close murmuring soft assurances in his ears while brushing his now droopy hair out of his wide glazed eyes.

Anzu smiled as Mai came over to her. "We get to go."

**Bakura and Mokuba**

Riding one of his brother's Blue Eyes was awesome. He'd been worried at first about Bakura, but the Dark Ma…Mahaado had assured him that Kisara would never allow anything truly awful to happen to him, so he had hung on and enjoyed the ride. When they approached the ocean, he wondered what it would be like to go swimming with a Blue Eyes. The curling waves looked warm and inviting and the dragon helpfully skimmed across the tops of them allowing him a closer look. The thief's trailing curses didn't dampen his enthusiasm for swimming in the least.

The castle sat above the city like a white diamond set amongst emeralds. Banners snapped colorfully in the breeze of the dragons wings as she dropped down into the courtyard where a crowd of duel monsters scattered. He looked hopefully around for Seto, but only saw a harried Celtic Guardian duck into a nearby door out of the wind.

"Are you sure Big Brother is okay?" Mokuba slipped down the dragon's smooth flank and landed next to her shoulder.

Bakura, damp and pulling twigs out of his wild hair, stalked up towards him, glaring up at the magician. "Come here priest." He sang in a sweet voice. "I've got something to say to you."

"YAMI!" A small white haired figure plowed into Bakura's side. "You came. You came! I knew you'd come!"

Bakura staggered slightly as his hikari's arms and mind wrapped themselves around him. "Ryou." He instinctively wrapped his arms around his light, burying his face in his hair. _Ryou, my light._

Ryou's happy voice bubbled into his lonely mind. _You're here. I missed you, but you're here! Don't ever leave me. I missed you. I waited and waited. You came! You're here. I love you. My yami is here. My yami is here!_

Bakura, his face hidden in his light's hair, smiled a sincere, happy smile. _My light is here. My light is here. I missed you. Don't you ever leave me again._

Mokuba smiled at the two as Mahaado landed next to him and led him into the castle's hall. The ceiling far above was soft, luminous, goldish white. Large pillars of the white-gold stone swirled upwards in fanciful shapes of flowers, leaves, birds and animals. Around the base of the soft candelabras stood ready for the night with long tapers of buttery gold wax. A small group of people were walking quickly towards them.

"Aren't any of your friends normal." A tall, lanky man with long black hair griped, as he shrugged into a long crimson cloak.

A small lady with gold hair smirked back. "This from the man who's drinking partner is the Sorcerer of the Doomed. Tell me, do all the heads get a sip too?"

"Will you to please?" A older man with a thick long beard of grey pinched the bridge of his nose. "I know you both consider bickering foreplay, but could you try to restrain yourselves? My nerves are wearing thin, I'm developing a migraine, and I now have a facial twitch. Are you both happy?"

The two adversaries huffed lightly and looked away.

"Foreplay, as if…" The thin, dark man crossed his arms, looking irritated.

"Consider if revenge for the knife." The golden girl skipped a few steps forward, a smile lighting her face. "Hi, Mokuba!"

Mahaado bowed elegantly to the group. "Lady, M'lords."

Mokuba could, now that they had come closer, figure out the Magician of Black Chaos and the Dark Sage, but the little gold lady didn't seem familiar. She stopped in front of him, grinning happily, and glancing back and forth between him and the magician.

"Are you okay?" She seemed to be addressing him.

He nodded and wondered if he was. Six months ago, he would have automatically assumed he was hallucinating, if he'd found himself facing a Dark Magician, a Blue Eyes White Dragon, the Dark Sage, and the Magician of Black Chaos. Confronted with these four, he'd have quietly made an appointment with a psychologist, requested heavy drugs, and hoped that Seto never found out. Two weeks ago, he'd have skipped the appointment and just gone for the drugs. Last week, he gave up trying to find a rational explanation for anything and only wanted to find his big brother.

As he pondered this, the small lady frowned and looked over at the Dark Sage. "Is Mystic up for another round of healing?"

"Mystic's hiding." The Magician of Chaos glowered at the younger Kaiba as theboy blinked at him. "I think she has a good point."

"Fuck off, Asshole." The lady growled. "Mokuba, it's me, Yuai. Seto and Jonouchi are here too. Would you like to see them?"

"Yuai?" Mokuba focused on that name. Mahaado had said something about them too. He shook his head clear and wrenched his attention away from all the duel monsters. "Where? Where are they? Are they okay?"

"Yippee for us. This one actually talks." The Magician rolled his eyes, then winced as the lady whacked him.

"They're fine. I think they're out in the garden." The lady…Yuai?... waved towards the back of the hall. A slender white haired, blue eyed man stood in the door, smiling happily at him. "Shimo can show us where they are."

"I'll see to it that someone arranges rooms for our new guests." The Sage turned and walked across the softly glowing room and disappeared through an elaborately carved door.

"I'm off to get plastered." The Magician stalked away as well, heading for another door. "I've got to see if those heads can drink." He waved mockingly over his shoulder. "Thanks for the idea, hon."

"Fine, hon." The lady…had she really said she was Yuai?... called sweetly to the Magicians disappearing back. "I just hope you're planning on a long bout of celibacy."

The Magician's footsteps faltered a moment, then he continued swaggering out of the hall. The gold haired figure snarled a second then shrugged. "Let's go." She smiled. "Kaiba is going to be relived to see you. He's been worried."

**Seth and Seto**

Seth lay stretched out on his hikari's bed in his soul room with Seto cradled against his chest. His light still looked too fragile to wake, but, Seth sighed, Seto needed this.

"Seto. You need to wake up now." He whispered softly into his light's ear, smoothing his hand through soft chestnut hair. "Mokuba is here."

A feeling of deep worry rippled through his mind.

"No, no. He's fine. There is nothing to worry over." He sent reassurance back to his hikari. "You want to see him, don't you?"

Seto stirred under his hands, nuzzling sleepily against his chest. A hazy picture of Mokuba filter through his mind.

"Yes. He's here to see you." Seth steadied his light as the other shifted again.

"Mokuba…" The word was hardly louder then a breath. Seto's blue eyes blinked slowly open. "Where…"

"He's with Shimo and Yuai. They're coming to see you." Seth gently helped Seto to sit up.

Despair flooded their connection as Seto slumped weakly against him. "Can't."

"Yes, my light. You can." Seth held him close. "Here, take my strength and go to your brother. You need him now."

Seth slumped bonelessly back onto the bed as Seto straightened. He blinked around the room he found himself in, then turned and looked at the unconscious figure laying behind him. "What the…?" He leaned closer, looking at the other, then shook his head with a small, half irritated, half indulgent smile. "Yami." He reached out to touch his other, then stopped looking at his hand. It was too thin, skeletal. He quickly checked himself over. "How…"

"Shhh, hikari. Don't bother with that now. Go see your brother." A soft accented voice whispered next to him.

"What…" Seto looked back at his double who looked like he was ready to pass out again.

"Go. Out the door…Mokuba." His other's eyes closed wearily.

Seto looked across the room. "Mokuba." He forced himself to his feet, wobbled a second, the strode out.

He was laying under a tree. Koori was standing guard nearby, watching something intently.

"Koori?"

"Master Seto. Your brother, Master Mokuba, is here, and Master Jonouchi is on his way." Koori reached down and helped him to his feet. "The Tomb Robber is still in the courtyard. Kisara and Mahaado are watching over him and his hikari."

Kaiba nodded, smoothing the strange clothes down and wondering who the hell Mahaado was. Probably one of his yami's –now that's a concept I'll have to deal with later- friends. He noted that while he may have looked like a concentration camp survivor in his soul room –another concept I need to deal with- he looked fine out here. "How long do I have?"

Koori shrugged. "A hour, maybe two. When you start feeling weak, you need to switch back."

Kaiba nodded. "Is everything okay."

"Yes, master. Except Master Jonouchi really, really wants some attention." Koori looked innocently off at a passing Red Skull Bird.

"Hm?" Kaiba could hear Mokuba's voice getting closer. "What does that mean?"

"Master Seth feels that Jonouchi is your lover, not his, so he's kept his distance." Koori grinned. "Or at least has tried to. Master Jonouchi has other ideas. Rather creative ones too."

Kaiba frowned. "What do you…"

Mokuba walked around a group of bushes and spotted him. "Big Brother!"

Seto strode forward quickly, feeling a invisible knot of worry disintegrate. "Mokuba."

**-00-**

The mansion was silent. Only the softest hush of servants' feet going about their daily duties disturbed the otherwise empty quiet.

"Where are they?" The small figure with one gold eye snarled softly, gliding through one empty room after another.

"Not at the pharaoh's, not at the thief's, not even at the school." She hissed, kicking a small electronic device that shattered into a hundred pieces. "I need that brat! Where the fuck is he!"

The tiny figure snarled, looking for another thing to destroy, then stopped. "Oh, yes. I almost forgot you, didn't I. Hmmm."

She smiled and glided unnoticed past a passing maid. "And you were such a good little puppet too, with such a pleasing scream." She purred as she slipped through the front door and walked down the steps. "I rather miss that scream. Now where did you go, Duke? Time to scream for your master."

* * *

Since I am not allowed to post individual responses to my reviewers, I thought I'd share a few of my chapter notes. I put these down to remind myself what I need to do in a chapter. They're just drabbles that might interest you if you want to know how I manage my writing.

Yami, Yugi, and company

Off to the shadow realm with ye…

Evil Bad Dude

haha my plans are…well, confusing. How am I supposed to take over if no one is here to take over? Oh damn….

Jonouchi

Oh, why oh why can't I get laid…. It's karmically unfair that Yugi got his bones jumped and I'm stuck with a dragon.

Chapter 14

Bakura/Mokuba- in shadow realm. Meets Mahado. --Okay, I've got to be nice, but hey, here… We'll ride on the dragon, you can be dangled from it's claw like a piece of meat…

Yami/Yugi- I need a little love… I mean a tiny bit o' lovin'… No, no I mean a small… okay, just kill me now….


	16. Faults

Disclaimer: Yugi-oh is the property of Kazuki Takahashi, who is a genius.

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

**

* * *

**

**Psyche**

Chapter Sixteen: Faults

**OCs**

**Ahmose: (Egyptian for: The moon is born)** Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on**: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame**: Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon**: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara**: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori**: **(Japanese for: Ice)** The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr**: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be.He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt. She is Ahmose's mother, which will be covered later.

**Shimo**: **(Japanese for: Frost)** The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai**: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

* * *

**Seto and Jo**

"Jo, should I be worried?" Seto watched as his brother romped out of the garden with a grinning Shimo. The two were off to dive bomb the remnants of the herd of niwatori. "You for all apearences get killed by a psycho and tossed into a river gorge. I get blown up by another wacko. His nanny has been transformed into a duel monster. He's now standing in the middle of the Shadow Realm and all I get is a hug and a "Big Brother, are you alright?" and he's off to chase giant chickens with a dragon." He looked back over his shoulder at the blond. "I'd send him to therapy, but who would I send him to?"

Jo smiled and shrugged.

Seto sighed, turning around and heading back into the castle. Jo trailed after him, mentally cataloging where dragons were. Shimo was now off with Mokuba. Koori had been ordered to watch over the two of them, and Kisara was MIA with Mahaado. His own Red Eyes was still stuffing himself with niwatori. There were no Petite Dragons floating around. Jo eyed Kaiba as they went up the stairs towards their rooms. There had to be a trick someplace. After all this time plotting how to pounce on his lover, he knew a dragon was lurking someplace.

"When we get home. I am giving up dueling." Seto shook his head unhappily as they entered the suite of rooms they shared. "If it's between the game and Mokuba's welfare, I'm going to have to stop." He dropped onto the edge of the bed, arching his back and twisting as if working a know out of his muscles.

Jo checked around the room, opening the wardrobe, sticking his head into the other rooms, and even checking under the bed. No dragons.

"I can't give up my Blue Eyes though." Seto sighed and settled back onto the bed, adjusting the pillows and laying back with a soft murmur of contentment. "I suppose I could get them framed."

Jo looked at the sprawled brunet and went over to the balcony to check for lingering giant reptiles. He eyed the roof top out side their rooms, checked under the bench and peered over the railing. All clear.

Seto sighed again softly, "I'll give the rest of my cards to Yugi. At least they won't be in the hands of a idiot." He rolled on his side and pillowed his head against his arm to look at Jo. His other hand trailed down to scratch his stomach lightly. "When you're at the mansion, you'll have to give up dueling too. I won't have it around Mokuba. Not anymore."

Jo nodded absently, and gave the curtains around the windows and balcony doors a good shake, just in case a Petite Dragon was hiding in them. Not even dust rose from the heavy fabric.

"Maybe I'll take up chess again. I noticed that Ryou seems to enjoy the game." He stretched back out then, frowned and sat up taking his shoes off. "Chess is a less stressful then dueling. I don't think anyone's soul ever got sucked out over a game of chess."

Pausing in his inspection of the bathroom, Jo nodded. He looked into the tub, gave the shower a careful perusal, and glanced warily at the commode.

"Or maybe Go. I used to really enjoy that game." Seto pulled off his socks and stuffed them into his shoes, dropping them both to the floor. "Some of the strategies used in it are amazing." He pulled off his tunic and tossed it over the back of a chair then stretched back out on the bed, half naked, looking up at the ceiling, and running one hand through his hair. "I wonder where I put my Go set."

Jo shrugged and looked behind the potted tree in the corner. He then poked his Rainbow Flower, that began singing a loopy version of American Pie. He stood up on a chair and checked a hanging plant for any nesting dragons.

"Maybe not, I heard a disturbing rumor about Go players. It sounded a lot like the whole yami-hikari set up, but with a haunted Go board. Chess would be less risky." Seto nodded, ruffling his hair one last time and glancing to where Jo was now searching through the chest of drawers. "What are you looking for?"

Jo jerked guiltily and gave Kaiba a sheepish grin.

Seto shook his head and rolled over on the bed, muscles stretching in a silky languid ripple. He propped his chin on his folded arms and watched the blond check under the chairs. He sat up and wiggled out of his breeches and threw them at Jo. "Buy a clue, love. I'll loan you the money."

Jo blinked at his now naked lover, then, with a grin, pounced.

**Yugi, Malik, Marik, Honda, Anzu, Mai**

"Yami!" Yugi yelled looking around. "Yami!"

"I can't see him over here." Honda's voice came from a distance to the left. "Yami. Where are you man?"

"Damn pharaoh, it was a simple transfer. Where the fuck is he." Marik's voice floated back from a distance. "Pharaoh, get your royal ass over here."

"Yami?" Anzu's voice called from the right.

"Could he be back in the other realm?" Malik asked from the darkness and shadows.

"No. I checked." His yami snarled back. "His royal pharaohness wasn't there."

"Yami." Mai called from someplace past Anzu. "You there? Yami?"

"Everyone get back together. We don't need anyone else lost." Marik's voice called. "The pharaoh can take care of himself. We need to get going."

Yugi jogged to where he heard the yami's voice, trying hard not to panic. "I can't feel him. It's like he's…gone." His voice caught on a sob. "My yami's gone."

Malik appeared out of the swirling shadows and pulled him into a hug. The rest of the gang gathered around them.

It had been a simple plan. They went to the park, the yamis insisting that they needed room to transfer so many people to the Shadow Realm safely, with only a quick stop at the game shop to get a few snacks and a thermos of tea. Yami and Marik had spent a few minutes grumbling to each other about the best way to transfer so many people, then had shooed them to the center of a small clearing, and used the Puzzle and the Rod to shift everyone to the other side. However, Yami never made it. When they arrived, they had all been in the same positions they had been in before, but with Yami's spot noticeably vacant.

"I knew it. I knew it." Yugi sobbed. "I knew something bad was going to happen to Yami."

"One out of seven isn't bad." Marik looked around and shrugged. "Let's go find the thief and the little Kaiba. For all we knew, the prima dona pharaoh went directly to them." He patted Yugi's head. "This is the Shadow Realm little one, it messes up mental links. If Malik wasn't right here, I probably couldn't sense him."

_Is that true Yami?_ Malik looked over his shoulder at his darkness.

_Partly, it would take a lot of distance, but it would make sensing each other difficult._ Marik sauntered off into the shadows. _If the pharaoh is that far away, we're going to need the thief to find him._ "Coming?"

Malik pulled Yugi along with him as he started to follow. _And how are we going to find Bakura if we can't even find Yami Yugi?_

_Bakura can find us. He's got the ring._ Marik glanced back as the gang trailed along after his hikari.

_Not a great plan. What if he doesn't use the ring and just grabs Ryou and heads home?_ Malik scowled at his other. _Won't we be wandering around the shadows like a pack of Hoppy Meals for monsters?_

Marik shrugged. _Just toss the friendship girl at them. It'll be a win-win situation. Either the monsters will eat her, or she'll start talking and drive them off._

**Jonouchi**

That had been an unqualified disaster. Jonouchi looked over to the sleeping form of his lover and slumped dispiritedly into a chair. He'd plotted, schemed and watched for even a small chance to get his hands on Kaiba's beautiful body, and when he finally got his wish, he'd blown it. Not that Kaiba would ever say anything, no he even apologized to Jo for the whole episode, taking the blame for the entire mess, but the fact was, it had all been his fault. Kaiba's overblown sense of responsibility couldn't change the facts.

Jo bit his lip and forced the sting in his eyes away. It had began fine enough. He had enthusiastically jumped at the chance that Kaiba was handing him. He felt starved for the taste of his lover's silky flesh, had dreamed of letting his hands stroke down smooth curves of muscle, had longed to wind his fingers into soft, glowing chestnut hair. _Damn._

He had gleefully pounced on Kaiba, hungrily kissing his lover as his hands slid around the already naked body beneath him. The first small hint that something was wrong had been the tiny twitch of unease that shifted through him when Kaiba's hands started pulling the clothes away from him. He'd firmly shoved it aside, believing it nothing more than the now ingrained expectation that a dragon was lurking nearby to spoil is fun. He had broken the kiss only long enough to catch a breath, and allow his shirt to slide off over his head, before sealing his mouth over his love's, slipping his tongue back into the silky heat of Kaiba's mouth. When he felt the first tug at the waist of his breeches, he had jerked away, feeling a sharp spike of fear. He'd masked it quickly, dropping his mouth down to nip at a sensitive spot on Kaiba's throat, that he knew would make the brunet melt beneath him. He'd been rewarded with a low moan and the body that he had pinned to the bed arching up against him eagerly. He'd let his fingers slide down, along the curve of his lover's back, delighting in the shivers running though the tense muscles. When Kaiba regained enough sense, his fingers again tugged at his waist band, pulling the clothing down to the point where Jo could kick them off.

They'd rolled over, still kissing, their hands reacquainting themselves with the familiar planes of muscle and bone. Kaiba had shifted, nuzzling little kisses and nips down Jo's neck. When he got to the curve of Jo's shoulder and bit down a bit harder, a move that the blond usually appreciated, Jo felt nothing more then a flare of panic. He'd quickly shifted out from under his love, and took a deep breath.

"Jo?" Kaiba had sounded puzzled .

He'd managed a shaky smile.

His love had rolled to lay down next to him, pulling him back into his arms. "You want to go slower?"

Jo had shaken his head, his body had been demanding relief and he hadn't been about to let whatever glitch that was happening in his head mess up his chance of getting what he needed. He'd reached over and pulled Kaiba back to him, twining his arms around his neck and shoulders.

Kaiba had looked at him questioningly, but then smiled and pinned him to the bed. The panic had returned nearly full force as he was pressed down into the bed by the taller, heavier body that moved demandingly against his own. Kaiba's hand had grasped his cock firmly and started stroking and pulling him to hardness, even as he bit demandingly at Jo's throat.

Jo had writhed beneath him torn between wanting and fearing. His breath coming in ragged gasps, as he'd wrestled between the two extremes. He hadn't wanted to give in, to ruin this, not after wanting it for so long. He'd bucked demandingly up into his love's hand, pulling his head up to kiss him.

He'd felt Kaiba shift and stretch, reaching to the side table. Then he'd been back, his hot tongue lapping at his nipples even as his free hand slid down his leg, lifting it and nudging it aside, opening him, leaving him vulnerable. He'd moaned softly, twisting in need and fear.

Slick fingers had entered him, stretching him. He had felt cold sweat shiver down his back, as he arched up into that touch. He'd twisted against his lover, shaking. _Faster, Seto, faster, before it catches up to me._

The fingers had withdrawn and Kaiba had moved between his legs, his hands pulling them up and around his waist. "Jo.." Jo had looked into his lover's eyes, nodding, lifting himself slightly to Kaiba, who pressed forward.

Then they had been joined and the panic clawed it's way free. Jo had thrashed, kicking away from his shocked lover and rolled off the bed. Kaiba had fallen to the side, gasping from a kick to his stomach, as the blond fell to the floor.

Jo had lay on the floor shaking and crying silently.

"Jo? What the hell…" Kaiba had crawled to the side of the bed, one arm wrapped around his abdomen, and looked down at his lover. "Jo?"

Jo had looked at him wildly, fear still ruling him. He'd scrambled back, away from his lover till he bumped into a chair, then he sat still, watching Kaiba with wide terrified eyes.

"Jo…" Kaiba had pulled himself out of the bed, wheezing a bit, his arm tightening around his belly. "It's okay Jo. It's okay."

Jonouchi had only shaken his head, scrambling around the chair. Kaiba had slumped against he side of the bed, closing his eyes a moment, then he shook his head and looked steadily over at him. He'd glanced out the balcony window, frowning, then looked back at Jo. "Calm down Jo. You need to calm down, now."

Jo had shaken his head, watching the brunet with wide frightened eyes. He had known that Kaiba wouldn't hurt him, that he loved him. He had known that he was acting like a idiot, but he couldn't stop. He'd shivered as Kaiba got to his feet and walked over to his clothes and started pulling them on, deliberately turning his back on Jo, giving him time to pull himself together.

Then, the door had slammed open, and Kaiba had stepped nimbly aside as E'on nearly fell into the room, the Red Eyes looking as panicked as Jonouchi felt. "Master!"

Jo had nearly buried himself in his dragon's arms as the Red Eyes dropped to his knees next to him.

"I'm sorry Jo. This is my fault. I should have known that you weren't ready for this." Kaiba's voice had sounded sad.

Jonouchi had looked over to where Kaiba stood across the room, now fully dressed. E'on then hissed softly at the brunet and the brunet nodded.

"E'on will stay with you." Kaiba's shoulder's had sagged, "Calm him down. If you need anything, let me know."

E'on had growled softly, pulling Jo closer, as Kaiba walked out the door.

It had taken awhile, but he had managed to calm down. Koori had come in a few minutes after Kaiba had left and between him and E'on had managed to coax him back into bed and gotten him to drink a cup of something bitter tasting.

When he had poked at it suspiciously, E'on had shrugged. "So, we're drugging you. Got a problem with it?"

He'd gulped it down, hopping that it might somehow make the whole mess go away. It hadn't, but it had made his taunt, stressed muscles and nerves relax. Not only did it not make the problem go away, it had made him terribly aware of just what kind of mess he'd made of everything. His only comfort was the if Kaiba was really angry at him, Koori wouldn't be hovering attentively nearby. He'd miserably pulled the blankets up and covered his head with a pillow.

When E'on's drink had finally wore off, it was late evening and he was alone. His Rainbow Flower had already been closed up tight, and it's pot was snoring softly. The balcony doors had been left open, and he had guessed that a dragon was lurking on the roof outside. He hadn't minded, but he'd looked sadly at the other side of the bed, were Kaiba should have been, and pulled himself out of the clutches of warm blankets and soft pillows to go find his love.

He hadn't gone far, just next door. Jo had let himself into the room and sat watching him sleep.

_I really messed it up._ Jo watched Kaiba's chest rise and fall in deep even breaths.

E'on's voice sounded sleepy. _What did you break now?_

_It was all my fault. I didn't tell him._ He bit his lip as Kaiba shifted slightly in his sleep. _I just kept going and didn't let him know._

_I think he got the idea._ E'on slipped into the room and stood next to him. _You might want to try not kicking people in the stomach to let people know what your thinking, but if it works for you…_

Jo wondered if Kaiba would be angry if he slipped into bed with him.

_I'd leave it till morning._ E'on touched his elbow. _Then see if he's got a bruise. If he does, we'll go camping till the bruises fade. People forgive things better when their not in pain._

Jo allowed the dragon to lead him back to his room. He crawled into bed and snuggled down against Kaiba's pillow. He heard E'on walk out to the balcony, then a soft whoosh of air as the dragon went back to the roof tiles where he had been before.

**Seto and Seth**

Seth listened to the blond walk out of the room and then sat up. It had taken less then one hour for his hikari to get himself into trouble. He'd been sleeping soundly in his hikari's bed when a jolt of pain woke him up. He'd staggered to the door of the soul room to find his hikari hurt, confused and upset. Not usually a situation that he would have worried about, his light had proven to be quite durable through the years, but in Seto's present condition, it was dangerous.

_Seto, let me handle this._ He'd gently caught his hikari's shocked, upset form and pulled him away. _You need to rest._

_No! Jo needs me. Something's wrong._ Seto had fought him, but he'd taken the energy back that he'd given, and Seto had slumped weakly against him.

_I'll take care of it._ He'd sent his light back to his room and stepped in to find a terrified Jonouchi crouched behind a chair. It had taken less then a second to asses the situation, his hikari's still slightly aroused state, Jo's nakedness, the mess on the bed, the protest of bruised muscles.

He'd glanced out the balcony door, finding the sleeping mind of Jonouchi's sated dragon. _E'on! Come here now! Jonouchi's hurt!_

He hadn't paused to hear the little dragon's squeaked questions. He'd looked at the panicking blond, and realized his presence was only hurting the other, so he's got up, got dressed, and as soon as the little dragon showed up, left. He'd stepped out into the hall, and leaned against the wall, listening to E'on sooth the boy.

_Master? Are you alright?_ Koori had came to stand in front of him.

"I'm fine." He'd nodded to the room he'd just left. "Go help with him. I need to take care of Seto."

Koori had hurried inside and Seth walked down the hall to a unused room and collapsed onto the bed. Seto had used up a lot of the energy he'd loaned him, and he was happy to have a soft place to drop their body.

As he'd stepped into Seto's room, he found his light curled up on the floor, crying and still awake. He'd scooped the fragile figure up and walked over to the bed.

"I raped him." Seto had whispered, tears still streaking down his gaunt cheekbones.

"I sincerely doubt it." Seth had put him down and gently started looking for injuries. "He's been chasing me around for weeks. I doubt he protested when you took him to your bed." As he'd guessed, across the taunt fragile skin of his light's belly a deep bruise was already forming. He, then had run his fingers along his lower ribs, frowning when he noticed depressions that shouldn't have been there.

"I knew something was wrong." Seto's voice had barely been above a breath. "He was acting strange. But I didn't stop."

"Did he motion for you to stop." Seth then had carefully turned Seto to look at his back. Some of the deeper cuts had reopened and were seeping fresh blood.

"I should have known." Seto had closed his eyes with a small gasp as Seth lifted him up.

"If he wanted you to stop, he would have let you know. Now stop fretting about it." Seth had walked out of Seto's room and across the hall to his own.

The room resembled a temple, with carved stone columns rising into the darkness above. Polished stone floor stretched into the receding shadows that masked the labyrinth of stairs that rose upwards. The soft scent of incense wisped through the room, and small flutters of light danced in the shadows like fireflies. Seth had nodded respectfully to the carved statues of gods that lurked in various nooks amongst the columns as he walked past carrying his hikari, mentally apologizing for not doing a more through obeisance to them. He'd made his way up one set of stairs and after twisting this way and that, through the maze of his soul, came to a small room with a low bed in it. He'd then laid Seto down on it and covered him with a soft blanket.

"He'll never forgive me." Seto hadn't even bothered to open his eyes.

"You're just tired." Seth had slipped into bed next to him and pulled the far too delicate form against him. "Go to sleep now. I'll deal with this in the morning."

"What will I do without him?" Seto had refused to give up.

"You won't have to find out. Now go to sleep. We're both tired." Seth had put his hand over Seto's eyes and murmured a few words in Egyptian. Seto had instantly gone limp in his arms. Seth had pulled him closer and went to sleep too.

Now, he was awake again, and if not at his best, he was good enough to deal with the problems that were bound to have cropped up. Seto was still asleep, and the spell would keep him asleep for a good while longer. A quick check found Shimo still tending Mokuba, who was now neck deep in kuribos. Koori was perched up on the roof, keeping a watchful eye on both him and Jonouchi and Kisara was…with Mahaado, who was hiding from a white haired tomb robber.

He stretched and stood up. Koori rumbled a soft question, but Seth ordered him to stay. He opened the door and stepped out into the hall, noting that the candles in the castle's halls had already been lit. He strode down the hall, towards were Shimo was keeping Mokuba well distracted.

"Big brother!" Mokuba grinned lifting a kuribo for him to look at. "You have got to feel this. It feels like a koosh ball."

Seth nodded, and motioned for Shimo to leave. "Have you eaten dinner yet?"

Mokuba shook his head. "I was waiting for you and Jonouchi."

Seth caught the calculating look on the child's face and smiled. "I see you're going to be just as bad as the others."_ Did Seto really take care of himself so poorly?_

The kid grinned back. "So, where's Jo, I want to eat."

"He's not feeling well." Seth walked out the door with the child at his side. "He's not as strong as he pretends to be."

"What's wrong?" Mokuba stopped, looking questioningly upwards. "Is he okay?"

Seth nodded and nudged the child along. "He pushed himself too far and needs to rest."

"He looked fine, before." They walked into the dinning room with it's strange bowers. A few monsters were scattered around the room. A fire princes was finishing up her meal and flirting with Neo, who looked rather embarrassed. The Witty Phantom sat by himself at the edge of the table, with a sheaf of papers stacked in front of him. Seth guided Mokuba to the other end of the table.

"As you know, there is a difference between looking fine and being fine." Seth settled down in a chair at the table.

A small platoon of Beaver Warriors marched out of a nearby shadow and started depositing platters, bowls and cups onto the table. They all scrambled hastily back, however, when Shimo prowled into the room and glared at them. Only when the Blue Eyes sat down across from his master, did the little troop finish their culinary maneuvers and disappear.

Seth glanced over to where Shimo was sitting eyeing him suspiciously, then noticed that Mokuba was giving him the exact same look. "You can both stop that." He served himself some soup, giving them both a defiant glare. "I do know how to eat."

"I'm just making sure. You might be out of practice." The kid gave him a cheeky smile.

_Apparently the answer to my question is yes, Seto did take care of himself poorly._ Seth sipped his way through the soup thoughtfully.

Mokuba gleefully gobbled everything in sight and reached for seconds. "This stuff is great." He mumbled between bites. "Who knew Beaver Warriors could cook."

Seth set his bowl aside and found a full plate of food instantly deposited in front of him. He looked up at Koori. "I thought I told you to stay with Jo."

_I came to get him something to eat. I could hear his stomach growling from outside._ Koori held another plate of food in his hands. _Kisara and Mahaado are keeping my watch._

"Come on Big Brother, eat up. This stuff is good." Mokuba grabbed what looked like a lopsided cupcake. "Can we take a few Beaver Warriors home? Hmmm?"

"Only if you carry them." Bakura thumped down next to Mokuba, with Ryou settling shyly next to him. The thief eyed Kaiba carefully, then turned to start filling his plate. "We're leaving in the morning. I want to get home and hunt the bitch that sent Ryou here down."

"Was it really Yuai?" Mokuba looked over at Ryou.

"Well, I guess you could say that." The white haired hikari took a roll and sipped a cup of something that might have been tea. "It might be fairer to say it was someone who looked like Yuai, seeing that Yuai is now here."

"Yuai or not, she's dead." Bakura started tearing through his food with wolfish abandon. Mokuba shifted closer to Kaiba to stay out of reach of bits of flying food.

Seth kept his attention on his food. _Say one word thief and there'll be bits of you flying through the room._

Bakura glanced over at him and gave him an evil grin. "So. Long time no see. How've you been?"

Seth bared his teeth in a snarl. "Fine. Let's see if this time we can make it longer before we see each other again."

The thief snorted, gnawing through a piece of steak. "My heart is breaking." He placed one hand dramatically against his chest.

"Yami, can you pass me those asparagus things?" Ryou nudged him.

"No." Bakura eyed them. "I don't want you eating anything that is still moving."

"They're moving?" Ryou and Mokuba chorused together. Ryou looked sick and Mokuba grabbed the bowl to watch the long green shoots slither around their bowl.

Seth quickly checked to make sure none were on his plate and found one lurking under his mashed potato things. He speared it and watched it thrash around, sending soft potato like substance around the table. _Koori! What the hell did you put on my plate! You better not be feeding this to Jo._

He could hear his dragon's embarrassed voice. _They are a bit under cooked, aren't they. And no, it escaped before I got to the room. It's now hiding under a candle stand in the hall._

He pushed his plate away and grabbed a roll. Shimo frowned at him. He frowned back. "No. I am not going to finish, and Mokuba, put that bowl down."

"Hey, look! They purr if you pet them." Mokuba set the bowl down, stroking the flared head of one green shoot.

"That really looks disturbing." Bakura muttered, eyeing the kid. "Stop playing with your food!"

"Watch your tone thief." Seth growled.

"Well, look at him. He's fondling his food. Tell me that doesn't look perverted." Bakura gestured to where Mokuba was still stroking the green shaft.

Seth shuddered as he glanced at his hikari's brother. "Granted. But watch your tone."

"Can I keep one?" Mokuba laughed as the one he had been petting wiggled around his finger purring.

_The only way this could get worse is…_Seth watched in horror as the little green shoot spat at Mokuba. "That's it. Dinner's over." He grabbed the bowl, slammed it down on the table and yanked the child out of his seat and down the hall towards the exit. Shimo trailed after them. "Tomorrow morning thief. We'll meet you in the court yard."

Bakura watched him storm out the door, absently plucking a green shoot out of the bowl and munching on it. "Haven't changed much, have you, priest?"

**Yami**

He was in his bedroom, the unchanging one from his soul room, but it had changed. The normally softly glowing walls weren't glowing. It was dark, gloomy. Instead of the normal warm solitude he enjoyed when in the room, a chilling breeze fluttered through the open balcony doors, and women shuffled in muted grief through the room, occasionally lifting their eyes to stare at him coldly. On the bed, with its out of place pillows, Pepi was curled in a sobbing ball around one of them. Her long black hair twisting in rat tails down her back as she cried.

Seth was leaning tiredly against the wall, absently holding a child's toy. The same carved wooden cheetah that always sat on the floor at the foot of the bed. He didn't look at him, or even seemed aware of the other people in the room. He looked out the doors blankly, fingering the tiny animal. His normally clear eyes clouded and tired.

"Ahmose. Please, please let me see him." Pepi looked up at him, pleading.

He shook his head, unable to meet her eyes. "He's gone. There's nothing to see."

"Please."

Seth shifted slightly as the door opened and more women hurried into the room, with steaming cups and small charms to ward off evil. He gave his head a shake and dropped the toy to the carpeted floor, where it bounced to the end of the bed and landed on it's side. "Has anyone informed Kallon and Ledowr?"

Yami didn't know. He shook his head, feeling helpless.

"Please. Just for a moment. Please." Pepi shivered, pulling herself off the bed, showing that she was swollen with another child. "I just want to see him. Just once. Just for a moment."

Yami remembered the pillows now, as if that small detail was important. The pillows had been a gift to Pepi from a distant queen. He remembered the woman had been a soft, round person with a gaggle of children hovering around her. The pillows had been to make Pepi more comfortable when she was pregnant with their first child, Ahmose. He forced himself to go sit down on the bed next to his wife, trying to not notice those pillows, guilt making his feet drag heavily across the floor. When he finally managed to make it to the side of the bed, he carefully pulled Pepi into his arms. "I would like to see him again too, just once, but there's nothing to see, Pepi. Nothing."

"You. You." Pepi pushed him away. "You and your games. Why!"

"It was an accident." Seth's voice sounded thin and worn. "An accident. The door…"

"I'm sorry." Yami didn't know who he was apologizing to, Seth, Pepi, the women who ghosted around the room, staring at him with accusing eyes, Ahmose, or Yuai. Maybe all of them.

The door opened again and Isis came in, holding more charms and a scroll. "My pharaoh, Lord Kallon is waiting for you in your study. He said you'd know why he was here."

Pepi, who a moment before had been pushing him away, suddenly grabbed onto him. "No. Don't leave. No, don't."

He pulled her close resting his cheek against her hair. "Shhh. I'll stay."

Seth nodded. "I'll go talk to him." He pushed himself away from the wall tiredly. "Isis, have you seen Akhenaden or Shimon?"

"They are down in the main court dealing with some of the courtiers. Rumors are already spreading." Isis looked down at the charms she held. "Mahaado and Shada are preparing Yuai to go back to her people and Karim is helping with the guard."

Seth frowned, then shrugged. "Then this will be my task." He bowed to Yami then walked out the door.

Pepi shivered against Yami, he slender arms wrapping around his waist. "Isn't there something, anything, that can bring him back?" She looked up at him with her soft brown eyes. "Anything?"

* * *

**Review please.** I was playing with time and tenses this time. Do you like straight past tense, or did the character's looking back at things that had already happened work better for you? Part of me likes the layering of looking back, another part thinks it puts too much distance to the action. What do you think? (I need to get a life….) 


	17. Ideas

Disclaimer: Yugi-oh is the property of Kazuki Takahashi, who is a genius.

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

**AN**: Before you even ask. Yes, this is why I made Yuai the ruler of the Shadow Realm. It wasn't because I wanted an all powerful Mary Sue. It was because I needed her to "punish" Yami. I've had this little complication to our favorite pharaoh's life plotted out since _Chrysalis…**sigh**_…I'm getting toward the end of my little fic and all the plots are starting to tie themselves up. Don't worry though, I still have a few surprises. This story has headed well into overtime and will definitely be longer then the originally planned twenty chapters.

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**Psyche**

Chapter Seventeen: Ideas

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**OCs**

**Ahmose: (Egyptian for: The moon is born)** Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on**: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame**: Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon**: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara**: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori**: **(Japanese for: Ice)** The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr**: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be.He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt.

**Shimo**: **(Japanese for: Frost)** The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai**: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

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**Yuai**

The sun was slowly settling over the horizon for the evening, coloring the sky dusky reds, purples and golds. Yuai sat on the battlements of her home watching the sun sink into it's nightly bed. Tomorrow, her friends, the last connection she had with the other realm would leave. Her life, the one she remembered best, would end. She would spend the rest of eternity as Yuai, Lady of the Realm, when all she really wanted was to go home and be Yuai Tasuke, playing Life behind Yugi's living room couch while eating doubtful Chinese food and watching Yami and Yugi get snippy about fortune cookie sayings.

"Please tell me you're not out here wishing for your friends." Her beloved's snide voice interrupted her thoughts. "Every time you do, they show up."

"Actually, I was thinking about Chinese food. Why did a delivery man show up?" Yuai glanced over to him. "I get the orange chicken."

There were good things about being back in the Shadow Realm. He topped the list. He was rude. He was irritating. He was arrogant, dictatorial, insulting, and she loved him with a completeness that was as simple as it was frightening. The one rather sad, doubtful blessing, at least on her part, of her entire cursed vacation from hell in the other realm, was that she had forgotten him. Only when she had awoken here to find him sitting at her side, did her memory start supplying that missing bit of all important information. If she had remembered during her long exile, she wondered if she really would have survived. She hated thinking of what he had to endure during those thousands of years watching helplessly.

"No." He sat down next to her, looking out over the city as its lights began to twinkle into existence. "Good thought though. See if you can wish for pork with those red chilies. That always looked good."

"It was." She edged closer, till she was snuggled against his side. If asked, she'd say she just wanted the warmth. She might even toss in a small insult about him. It wouldn't be the real reason, that she liked being close to him, but that wasn't anyone's business but their own. He knew and she knew the truth, that was all that mattered. They had been playing this game since they first met, and they hadn't tired of it yet. "The hot and sour soup was also pretty good. You would have liked it."

He draped an arm around her shoulders, so that her golden head was cradled against his shoulder. His excuse, if any were needed, was that she was too flaky to realize that there was a rather sizable drop beneath them and he didn't want to have to hold court in the morning, if she fell off the damn wall. "Are you sure you didn't have any passing thoughts, say, of a certain ex-pharaoh?"

"No. Not really, just a passing one about him and Yugi fighting over the fortune cookies." She slid her hand along his back, letting her fingers dip slightly into his pants. It was under his cloak, so no problem there.

"Hmmm. You need to stop that." He moved his arm to circle her waist. For safety concerns. The fact that his hand just happened to stroke along the bottom curve of her breast was purely accidental.

She looked up innocently, her fingers wiggling. "I do."

He nodded. "He showed up."

"Yami? How did that happen? Why didn't Mahaado…" She glanced back at the rooftops where Mahaado and his blue eyed lover had been perched outside of Jonouchi and Kaiba's bedroom. Only E'on, Shimo, and Koori were there now.

"Kallon's not sure. He's got a theory." Ledowr regretfully felt her fingers withdraw.

Yuai shifted away and stood. "Is he alright?"

"Why should you care? Must I remind you of the five thousand years of hell he put you through?" He stood up too, growling.

"It was an accident." She walked along the battlements with him tagging at her side. They quickly descended into the courtyard where a group of courtiers were gathering to go down to carouse through the city. Yuai sighed in irritation as the pompous nitwits called out greetings and invitations to come and join them. She gave them a strained smile and shook her head.

"The pharaoh should pay for what he did." He dodged a portly man with a huge plumed hat that nearly took out one of his eyes.

"How?" A courtier accidentally tripped her with his long swishing cape. "Put him through five thousand years of hell? What purpose…" She stopped, causing one of the horses to shy away and step on some noble's foot. The resulting yelp, though satisfying, didn't interrupt her sudden epiphany. She smiled a large toothy smile that Yugi would have instantly recognized. "I agree. He needs to pay."

"Uhm. Good." Ledower also recognized the smile and wondered if he should be busy the rest of the night. He hadn't cleaned out his libratory for centuries, maybe he should give it a go. Or the library, Kallon was always bitching about dust, he could dust the books.

"I'd say five thousand years sounds just about right." Yuai hummed happily to herself as she continued her path through the courtyard, which had suddenly become empty.

Ledowr gave the courtiers points. They did have some survival instincts. It had taken them less then two seconds to recognize their danger and leave the vicinity. He eyed the far castle gate and wondered if he could reach it before she stopped him.

"Yes. Five thousand years of dealing with those idiots sounds perfect." She turned and leveled the smile on him. "Don't you agree?"

"Of course!" He didn't really know what he was agreeing to, seeing that he'd been eyeing escape routes, but survival overruled any momentary lapses of judgment.

"I'm sure Kallon won't mind." She snuggled close to him, purring happily.

"I'm sure he won't." His mind slowly churned what she had said over. "Wait a second." He frowned. "You aren't really thinking of…"

She sighed happily. "Making Yami the ruler of the Shadow Realm for the next five thousand years while we go on vacation?" She stood on her toes and pecked a kiss on his cheek. "Why, yes, that's exactly what I'm thinking." She raced off towards the castle. "Start packing, love. We're going out for Chinese food and Bakura said he was leaving in the morning."

Ledowr eyed the now empty court yard. A courtier poked his head out of the stable door and gave him a brainless look. He grinned back, sending the fool back to hide in the hay. "Yes, I'd say five thousand years sounds perfect. I wonder if I can get my hands on one of those cookies?" He cackled a laugh that made the dragons on the rooftop startle away like a flock of overgrown pigeons and followed his love into the castle.

**Jonouchi**

Bakura still hadn't shown up and it was now well past midmorning and heading into afternoon. The guards that prowled along the castle walls with military precision had already gone through their morning rotations and had settled in for their shifts. Jo had watched the change. He had been waiting in the courtyard, with his clothes and his Rainbow Flower, when the first splashes of dawn broke over the horizon. It had given him something to do. Something besides staring out the balcony doors and wondering how, if it was even possible, to make everything okay again.

_Stupid, stupid, stupid._ He pulled his knees closer as he sat on the castle's step, shivering slightly in the late morning chill. Even his poor flower was shivering, it's pot's teeth chattering piteously. _How could I be so fucking stupid?_

Kaiba had never come to bed, never even came in to get his clothes, his hair brush, or even tell him he was staying in another room. His only hope that it wasn't completely fubared was that a Blue Eyes was always near. Even now, when all the other residents of the castle were off attending morning court, Shimo was with him, standing guard a few paces behind him. Not that any of the Blue Eyes had been overly friendly though. Koori had brought dinner. Kisara had slipped in for a few moments this morning to lay out his clothes, and Shimo was watching over him with the same diligence he always showed, but none of them had talked to him.

_I think they're just worried._ E'on was perched on the castle wall in his true shape. Jo had a feeling it was more to annoy the guards then any real need to be in his natural form. The dragon kept chortling merrily every time a guard tried to squeeze by him to do his rounds.

_About how upset Seto is probably._ Jo hid himself behind his knees. _Talk about having sexual difficulties. What really tops kicking your partner in the gut just as your about to really get it on?_

_Uuhh, well seeing that I actually haven't done that, I really can't say._ The Red Eyes flipped his tail over the parapet 'accidentally' knocking the helmet off a guard. _I set fire to a bed once, just as it was getting good. Does that count?_

Jo ran the scenario of setting Kaiba on fire during sex through his head. _That's pretty good._

A irritated guard kicked E'on's foot and the dragon jumped. The two glared at each other a moment, then E'on hopped down into the courtyard and assumed his human form. He snarled back up at the guard. "Same to you, asswipe."

_Eon…_

"He started it." The dragon teen sulked over and picked up the flower. "They're obviously not coming. Let's go someplace warmer, Rainbow's freezing its petals off."

Jo pulled himself to his feet and followed as the dragon walked back into the main hall and headed out towards the back garden. They wound their way through the empty paths till they got to a small clearing. In the center of the clearing was a tiny court with five steps leading down to a ring of variegated stone. In the center was a small tree with flaming leaves standing in a pool of clear, deep water. E'on placed the flower on the lowest step, where it was warm. Jo sat down on the upper step with Shimo hovering behind him like a white shadow.

His dragon sat down next to the flower and stroked its leaves till it opened and started warbling something that sounded suspiciously like _The Trouble I've Seen._

_Nice. Fitting too._ Jo slouched on the step.

"Jo."

He froze, then looked behind him. Shimo had backed off and Kaiba was standing where the Blue Eyes had been. He looked away quickly, not wanting to see Kaiba's expression.

_Tell him I'm sorry, E'on._ Jo bit his lip.

"He says he's sorry." E'on promptly relayed the message.

He could hear Kaiba's footsteps get closer, then his love settled on the step next to him. "For my part, I accept the apology."

Jo glanced at him, meeting brooding, dark blue eyes.

"But I'm not the one you need to apologize to." Kaiba sighed, looking over at the flaming tree, then back to Jo.

_I didn't see anyone else I kicked._ Jo thought and E'on relayed.

Kaiba nodded. "True, you didn't." He looked away again.

Jo frowned. E'on was shifting nervously, looking anywhere but at him. _Spill it dragon. What's up?_

"He won't tell you. I ordered him not to." Kaiba reached over and pulled him close, settling him on the step below, between his knees, wrapping his arms around him in a gentle hug. "You know I won't hurt you."

Jo nodded, leaning back into his love's embrace, feeling that everything was going to be alright. Kaiba wasn't angry. They were fine, maybe a bit rough around the edges, but they were still a they and not two hims.

"I need you to understand that Jonouchi." Kaiba brushed his hair off his face, away from his eyes. "I won't ever hurt you."

Jo nodded again.

"When I said I was not the one you needed to apologize to, I meant it." Kaiba's arms tightened briefly in another hug, then let him go. He stood up and stepped away. "I'm not Seto, and Seto is the one you have to apologize to."

Jo blinked. _What?_

E'on dutifully repeated it.

Kaiba stood looking at him steadily. "I'm not Seto."

Jo jumped away putting his dragon between him and…and…him.

Kaiba nodded sadly. "I meant what I said Jo. I won't hurt you. I've watched over you for weeks while Seto rested. I didn't harm you then. I won't start doing it now."

_Who the hell is he? _Jo inspected the brunette in front of him. He looked like Seto. He sounded like Seto. _A yami. He's got to be a yami. _

_Good guess._ E'on stood still, staying between the yami and Jonouchi.

The yami sat down again watching Jonouchi carefully. "When Seto got here, he wasn't in very good shape. What you saw on the outside was only a faint shadow of the damage done to his mind and soul."

Jo nodded, wanting to hear more, but stayed behind E'on, unsure what to make of the unexpected appearance of a yami. _Kaiba's yami. Didn't a yami come from a Millennium Item? If so, where did this one come from?_ E'on started ferrying the message, but Jo stopped him and nodded for the yami to continue.

The yami nodded back, "He'd spent months tearing himself to pieces over what happened to you, then someone got creative and decided to take is mind apart with a shadow spell."

Jonouchi stepped around E'on frowning. _What did they do to him?_ He nudged his dragon and E'on conveyed the message.

"They sent your finger in a box, only there was a spell attached. It basically burrowed into his mind and started expanding certain negative emotions such as guilt, grief, powerlessness, loneliness, worthlessness, and also drained his strength adding to the stress and fatigue he was already under." The yami tilted his head thoughtfully. "A well crafted spell. Very subtle. It didn't create so much as take advantage of what was already in Seto's mind. Even the pharaoh had a few problems identifying and breaking it."

_Who?_

Kaiba shrugged. "I'm not sure. Whoever it is, is in the other realm."

_Where do you come in and who the hell are you?_

The yami shook his head, narrowing his eyes thoughtfully. "Let's get to that in a minute. I'm not done with the first question."

Jo waved his hand trying to hurry him along, unconsciously edging out from behind E'on and stepping closer to the other.

"Finally, when Seto thought he'd finally found you. He got there too late. For all anyone could tell, you had been tossed into a river and your killer had committed suicide. He almost followed you, preferring death then to live without you." The brunet, whoever he was, paused, looking away for a moment. "He went to your funeral. He tried to pull himself together, then Mokuba got snatched by a man wielding a gun." A shadow of remembered pain flickered across the other's face. "He was still trying to recover from your death, the spell, and the stress he endured when you were taken. He couldn't handle losing Mokuba too. His soul started faltering, stumbling. When he got here, he was still functioning, but all he needed was one thing, even a tiny thing, and he shattered." The yami looked over to Jo, who was now standing in front of him. "I woke up, feeling that something was wrong. When I went to find Seto, he was barely…there." He looked away again, focusing on something inside himself. "I stepped in. I couldn't let Seto hurt anymore, and he needed rest and care." He blinked, coming back to the outside world, and grinned. "So, I found myself dealing with you."

Jo quickly reviewed his actions of the last few weeks and blushed.

The yami smirked slightly, but then grew serous again. "You needed Seto. You were important to him, so I decided to let you believe I was Seto."

_And now? Where is he now? And who are you?_

"He's asleep again. Yesterday, with Mokuba here, I gave Seto the strength to stand on his own." He shook his head, turning away. "Seto just wasn't well enough. I pushed him too soon." He glanced back with a bitter look on his face. "You didn't help. I know you didn't mean to harm him, but… you won't be seeing him for awhile."

_Who?_

"Seth. Couldn't you guess. Seto has a memory of you telling him about Egypt, about me." The yami, Seth, turned back to him. "Do you understand now?"

Jo frowned. _How do I know you're telling the truth?_

_He is. _E'on, who'd been faithfully acting as his voice, bit his lip nervously. _Koori, Shimo and Kisara have been acting weird because they felt Seto collapse. _The Red Eyes nodded slightly to were Seth stood watching them carefully. _He's been here since that first day. He's the one who called me last night when you got scared._

Jo looked away. _You trust him?_

_Yeah. He's a Blue Eyes, even if he isn't a dragon. Even when your fighting them, you can trust them._ E'on snorted. _Too damn noble, no sense of humor, and loyal to the end. Complete pains in the ass, but they're always straight with you._

_Yami said otherwise._ Jo shook his head. _But if he's been here since the beginning, then…Tell him I have to think about it._

E'on told Seth, who nodded.

"That's fine." He gestured and Shimo came back. "I wanted you to know. The pharaoh is here and the rest of your friends will probably be here before noon. If the thief doesn't babble who I am, the pharaoh or that moron who's holding the Rod will. You deserved to hear it from me." He walked down the path, then stopped, turning to look at Jo. "You still need to tell Seto you're sorry. He needs to hear it. Not from E'on, but from you."

Jo looked away. When he looked back Seth was gone.

**The Gang**

When Yugi anxiously pushed open the elegantly carved door, Yami was curled sleeping in the middle of a large ornate bed, with Jo, Kaiba, Mokuba, Ryou and even Bakura standing to one side in a hissing discussion.

"How the hell should I know. He had me chained to a sofa. It wasn't like I was going to run my travel plans by him." Bakura snarled softly towards Kaiba.

"He had to get here somehow." Kaiba snarled back just as quietly.

"He's a shrimpy little bastard, but he's not that small. You think I was carrying him around in my pocket?" The thief's voice dripped sarcasm.

Jo, standing next to Mokuba, was watching the two bicker, unconsciously imitating someone watching a ping pong match. Ryou was rubbing the bridge of his nose, with his eyes squeezed shut, looking like he was fighting back a headache.

Mokuba yawned, looked around and seeing Yugi grinned and waved. "Hey, Yugi, what kept you?"

Jonouchi jerked around and gave his friend a huge welcoming grin, then stepped back a bit startled when Honda shoved Yugi aside and rushed across the room, pulling him into a huge relieved hug.

"Man, oh man, you really had me going." Honda released him just as quickly, but still held onto him by one shoulder grinning insanely. "I actually thought you'd bought it."

Kaiba had stopped his argument the instant Honda rushed in and was now looking suspiciously at the other brunet. "Friend of yours?"

"What's with you?" Honda frowned slightly at the other.

Marik following Yugi, who scampered over to his yami's side, stopped looking at the group. "Oh shit."

Anzu, Mai and Malik, bringing up the rear with Mahaado, grinned at their friends and walked past the now frozen blond yami. Malik paused a moment, looking quizzically at his other, then shrugged and walked over to Ryou, patting his fellow hikari's shoulder in greeting.

"Jonouchi, if you ever go and get yourself killed again. I swear…I'll…I'll…kill you myself." Anzu glared at him fiercely for a few seconds then burst into tears and burrowed into Mai's arms.

Mai winked at him. "I knew you were to tough for that."

Jo smiled happily back, walking over to where Yugi was now sitting on the edge of the bed, holding his yami's hand.

Yugi looked up at him, looking rather small and worn, and gave him a tired smile. "I'm glad you're alright." He glanced around the room at all his friends. "I'm glad we're all alright."

Jo nodded.

"Hey, you're awfully quiet." Honda, having followed Jonouchi over stood at his shoulder.

"Leave him alone." Kaiba also walked over to loom over Honda's shoulder threateningly.

"Back off, Kaiba. What's got your panties in a twist?" Honda glared at the taller teen.

Kaiba snarled wordlessly, and started raising one hand, a luminous glow dancing along his finger tips. Jo stepped hurriedly between them, placing a calming hand on Kaiba's chest and looking into his eyes.

"That's not Kaiba." Marik, still standing at the door, murmured, almost to himself.

Mokuba nodded. "Guys meet Seth. Seth meet our friends."

"Seth?" Honda looked puzzled. Jo still stood making soothing gestures to the other brunet. "Who's Seth? Where's Kaiba?"

"Big Brother needed to rest, so his yami, Seth, is stepping in for a bit till Seto gets better." Mokuba bit his lip, looking unhappy, then shrugged. "He seems okay and Jo trusts him."

Jonouchi turned slightly and nodded affirmatively to Honda.

"Is Kaiba going to be alright?" Yugi's tired voice reminded them he was sitting next to them.

Seth looked down at his pharaoh's hikari, considering him carefully. His voice was very soft when he finally answered. "Yes, little one, Seto will be fine. Like you, he's just tired." He turned to the others. "We should take this little discussion outside."

Bakura nodded. "I haven't eaten since last night." He nudged his light and motioned toward the door with his chin.

"Cool. Do you think they have any more of that asparagus stuff?" Mokuba walked out, poking Anzu, who was still sniffling softly against her girlfriend's shoulder as he passed.

"Leave the asparagus alone, please." Ryou pulled Malik out of the room and down the hall after the black haired kid. "I had nightmares about it last night."

Mai and Anzu followed along. "What's so bad about the asparagus?" Anzu asked, walking with her arm around Mai's waist.

Jo looked up at Seth for a moment, then reached over and pulled Honda out the door after him.

"I think I could get used to you being quiet Jo." Honda gave him a smile, sauntering along at his best friend's side.

Jo grinned back and punched his friend's arm playfully.

Seth nodded toward the other side of the bed, looking at Yugi. "You should make use of that. You look like you need the sleep."

Yugi shook his head. "No, what if he wakes up?"

"Then he'll wake up happily in his hikari's arms." Seth turned away. "He won't be happy if he wakes up and finds you perched at his side like a vulture."

Mahaado, who had stayed by the door, nodded his agreement. "He's right, Master. It would not make him happy to see you look so worn." He walked over and carefully pulled Yugi to his feet and led him around to the other side of the bed. "Try to sleep. I will keep watch, and when he wakes, I will wake you."

Yugi tiredly nodded and kicked off his shoes. "Only for a little while though."

Seth walked over to the blond yami, letting a small nasty grin spread over his face. "Well, there you are. The fool who has been misusing my Rod." He glanced down to where the Rod hung on Marik's belt. "Can you hear it calling for me, it's rightful master, to reclaim it?"

Marik hissed, stepping back. "You lost it. It's mine now."

Seth snickered. "Worried? Worried that when I reclaim my Rod that you'll cease to exist?"

"Try and take it." Marik pulled the Rod out and held it defensively.

Seth laughed snidely. "Why should I?" He stepped around the other yami. "I had to deal with it for most of my previous life. It was a pain in the ass then, it's probably still a pain in the ass." He gestured for Marik to follow him. "Tell me, does it still get pissy and decide not to follow orders, usually at the worst possible moment?"

Marik blinked, looked down at the shining golden rod, then at the back of the priest that was walking away from him down the hall. "Yeah. I thought it was…" He narrowed his eyes looking suspiciously at the Rod. "You mean it's always done that? It's not just me?"

"No, as far as I can tell, there's a design flaw." Seth paused, waiting as the other yami came up to him, then continued down the hall with the blond at his side. "When you stop and think about who made it, it's not that surprising. I remember a time, Mahaado, Karim and I were out in the courtyard practicing…"

**Jame**

Mokuba hadn't come in, and the office was quiet. Jame had already reshuffled his appointments, dealt with the incoming mail, rerouted all e-mail to pertinent departments and much to Tanaka's surprise reorganized the personal department. Now, she stood outside the elevators looking bemusedly at the floor by floor listing of all the departments in Kaiba Corp.

_It's not like I have anything better to do._ She looked at the list for the departments at the top of the building. _It's not like I can get fired, when the boss isn't even here to fire me._

She pulled out a pad of paper and jotted down the entire directory. _After all, maybe I can organize myself out of a job. Make myself superficial. They do it all the time, just reorganize all of Kaiba Corp for maximum efficiency and do away with my position. Could work…Hmm…I wonder if I should look at the global? Maybe next week, if the boss doesn't get back._

Envisioning herself sitting happily lolling around Jamaica guzzling rum and eating sinful things, she stepped onto the elevator and punched the top floor. _By the time Mokuba returns, Kaiba Corp will be the smoothest running company in the world._

* * *

Take a moment and feed the muses. They're looking a mite thin. 


	18. Sanctuaries

Disclaimer: Yugi-oh is the property of Kazuki Takahashi, who is a genius.

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

**AN:** 1) Yami's smile. I noticed in the manga that Yami looks really creepy sometimes when he smiles. Mostly, he's adorable, but either as an artistic faux pas or for some other reason, he occasionally looks down right freaky. Which is odd, because he looks his creepiest when he's giving uplifting or moralistic speeches or going for the kill. 2) Earthquakes. Most sane people, when experiencing an earthquake get frightened to death. However, I have noticed, living in Southern California for most of my life, that the more you experience, the less reaction to them you have, till they become a minor thrill, if even that. Considering Japan has more earthquakes then SoCal, I would guess the Southern California attitude of eh-so-what to the earth rolling around would be even greater.

* * *

**Psyche**

Chapter Eighteen: Sanctuaries

* * *

OCs

**Ahmose: (Egyptian for: The moon is born)** Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on**: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame**: Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon**: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara**: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori**: **(Japanese for: Ice)** The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr**: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be.He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt.

**Shimo**: **(Japanese for: Frost)** The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai**: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

* * *

**Seth and Jo**

Poke

"mmmppphhhh."

Poke

"Nyaaa mmmaaaahhh."

Poke

"Whaaa? Nnnnyyaa."

Poke

"Go awaaa."

Poke

"Go away or die."

Poke

Seth, mumbling curses and death threats battled his way bravely out of the clinging, warm, soft, enfolding, comforting…

Poke

"Die!" Seth thrashed his way free of the blankets and faced the soon to be corpse who dared to wake him from his well earned rest. The soon to be dead man, also known by his friends as Jo, smiled back at him and playfully poked him again. Seth fell back with a moan. "Jo, I'm tired. I spent the whole night explaining to Mokuba how I can be me and Seto can be Seto and we can still be the same person but different."

Jo smiled and poked him again.

"Jo stop that or…" Seth hesitated, not knowing how well the blond would take a playful threat. "…or I'll get Seto to make sure you have **that** talk with Mokuba."

Poke

"Jo. Stop. It."

Poke

Seth narrowed his eyes, glaring into Jo's happy grin, then shook his head. "You do realize I'm not Seto?"

Jo nodded, still smiling happily, and edged closer to the still somewhat groggy priest.

Seth moaned. "Jo, just go back to bed. I'm tired and I don't want Seto to tear my balls off when he wakes up."

Jo patted Seth comfortingly on the cheek and leaned in to nuzzle a quick kiss on Seth's lips.

Sighing, Seth slid one hand into Jo's hair and pulled him back for another kiss. _What can a kiss or two hurt? Hmmm…_

Jo snuggled closer rubbing a hand over Seth's chest and licking lightly at the other's lips, silently asking for permission to take the kiss deeper. When the brunet opened his mouth, Jo's tongue slipped in to flirt playfully with Seth's. He gave a slight push against one slender shoulder and grinned into the kiss when Seth settled deeper into the pillows onto the bed with an almost relieved sigh. His other hand slid across to find a small hard nipple and began to rub it softly.

Seth broke away, with a shake of his head. "Jo, enough."

Jo pouted and nibbled at Seth's lower lip, sliding his hand down to smooth across shivering stomach muscles and playfully rubbed the small depression of Seth's belly button. He smiled to himself as Seth's eyes slid closed with a small moan, that suspiciously sounded like a dragon's pleased coo. _Ha. Seto makes the same sound when I do that. Funny, you'd never think dragons were suckers for tummy rubs._ He returned to his exploration of the now pliant brunet's mouth and let his fingers continue to rub soothing patterns across Seth's belly. When the last bits of resistance drained out of Seth, and he felt Seth's slender hands slide encouragingly down his shoulders and back, he slipped down, nibbling a teasing trail to the other's collar bones, there he paused while his hands wandered downward to tease the other's stiffening arousal. Seth panted softly, arching into the touch. Jo smiled trailing kisses down to Seth's navel, then swirled his tongue around in a lazy sweep. Seth writhed under him, causing him to chuckle silently to himself.

"Master! Time for breakfast!" E'on barged in caroling an obnoxiously cheerful morning greeting.

Jo lifted his head from Seth's panting body and grinned at his dragon. He pecked a quick kiss on Seth's lips and bounced playfully out of bed and out the door before the brunet could blink sense back into his eyes. E'on quickly bolted out after him casting guilty looks at the dragon tamer.

Seth laid there, panting and wondering if Seto really would kill him if…say…they left Jo in the Shadow Realm. "Jo, when I get up, you are going to pay…"

**Yami**

He was following himself down the hall and wondering why no one had ever told him he looked damn frightening with that look on his face. It was a slightly…well…crazed look. His eyes had gone all weird and his mouth had a really odd smile seemingly stuck on it, and his hair had gone all funny and sinister. He noted the guards and courtiers that passed him in the halls bowed politely, and gave him polite, if somewhat forced, smiles, but they also hurried along at a quicker pace till they were out of his sight. _I wonder if I still look like that sometimes? I've got to ask Yugi and have him hit me or something if I start looking like that._

The other him was also dirty looking. The white linen skirt he wore looked grayish and dull. Even his favorite red cape looked ratty, with smudges of soot and dirt along its hems. _The other me probably smells too. No wonder the nobles are vacating the area._ Yami shivered. He hated being dirty almost as much as he hated looking less then his best. Seeing himself look weird and filthy worried him. _This can't be me. It's like that dream where Ahmose… I didn't do that. He did and he's not me. No. I was fighting Bakura and dealing with Shadow beasts gone amok. I never killed…No. This isn't me._

The other him came to a door and stopped, tipping his head to the side, pressing his ear against the panel, and grinning that smug, off balanced smile. Yami took advantage of his dream body and slipped through the door into the room. The room on the other side was a study of some sort. Shelves with papyrus scrolls lined one wall. Sitting against another was a table with more scrolls and writing utensils. A few chairs were clustered together in the center of the room on a soft woven carpet. A window with its linen bug netting pulled aside dominated the farthest wall and looked out over the city. Seth and his father Akunaden stood in the room, and from the annoyed, tense slant of Seth's shoulders, Yami could tell they'd been arguing for awhile.

"I don't like it either, but he's…" Akunaden sighed tiredly rubbing his hand over his face. "He's not the same."

Seth stood with his back to the other priest glaring out the window. "No. I won't agree to it. He needs time, not…"

Yami eyed the door, which was now cracked open. He noticed one too bright red eye peering through the crack.

"He's had time. Bakura's roving around destroying nearly everything in sight. The temple is in shambles and the nobles are vacating the capital in droves, taking their armies with them." The old priest shook his head. "With the Syrians pressing our boarders, we don't have time for the pharaoh to…"

"Bakura is being handled." Seth turned glowering at his father. "The Syrians have been nipping at the boarder for decades, and you are supposed to be keeping the nobles in line."

"I can't force them to stay." The gray haired priest sighed, and slumped into a chair. "Especially with the rumors floating around. It's getting to the point I am wondering whether …" He shook his head and closed his eyes. "We need a strong pharaoh and I fear that with the prince's death, we lost the one we had."

Yami looked back and forth between the two in the room and the glittering eye. _I have to say, when he's got a point, he's got a point. The other me doesn't look too stable right now…_

"He'll be fine." Seth turned away again.

"No he won't, my son, and we both know that." Akunaden slumped dispiritedly in the chair. "Our country is falling apart. We have an enemy on the boarder waiting for even a second of weakness, we have another inside our country preying on our citizens, and our pharaoh is…" his voice sank to a whisper, "insane."

"No."

_I'm agreeing with him Seth._ Yami noticed the flash of a grin, even through the door. _He's not playing with a full deck._

"You have to." The older priest shook himself leaned forward toward his son. "I am too old; I don't have the strength to keep our country from falling apart, so it is up to you. You must take the throne."

"I would never betray my…" Seth snarled turning on the other.

"He's been trying to bring his son back." Akunaden pulled himself to his feet and walked slowly over to his son. "Necromancy is forbidden for a reason. The toll it takes on the mind and soul are too heavy. But our pharaoh has…"

"No. He's just…"

_Necromancy. That would explain the look._ Yami turned his back on the door, not wanting to see that grin anymore, then turned back around, not liking having that person at his back.

"Don't lie to yourself. Don't lie to me." Akunaden reached out and caught Seth's shoulder. "For the good of Egypt, you must take the throne."

Seth shivered under his father's hand, then pulled away angrily. "I can't. I won't."

Yami edged uneasily behind the two men as the door opened a fraction further. _For the Gods' sake, take the damn throne! He's a wacko._

"Then Egypt is doomed." Akunaden waved a hand towards the window. "Look at the city. Look at the people you consign to death. All because you cannot…will not see that the pharaoh we both loved is gone, as surely as if he had died."

"Father, this is treason. You can't really expect me to…" Seth backed away from the window.

"Protect Egypt? Be true to the royal blood that flows through your veins?" Akunaden stepped towards Seth, backing him into the room. "It is the duty of the royal family to not just rule, but to protect our country. I don't ask you to like what I am saying. I don't like it myself. How could I? He is my brother's child. The memories I have of him…" He paused and bowed his head. "I say what I say out of duty to the land of Egypt. As a member of the royal family, it is my duty to put my country's welfare over my own, selfish, desires."

Seth looked out the window, then back to his father. "He's my friend…"

"Seth, you must."

"Really cousin, why all the fuss? Surely a little assassination can't be bothering you?" The other Yami now stood in the room, still grinning. "After all, when planning on stealing a throne, you shouldn't be so squeamish."

Seth gasped and knelt. "My Pharaoh, I would never…"

Yami backed away, an uneasy feeling sliding down his back. It looked familiar. Seth kneeling with his brown hair glinting in the sun, Akunaden standing shocked, the room with a drowsy breeze blowing through the window, everything… _Oh Gods, no. I didn't… Please. I didn't… I fought Bakura. I defeated Zork…Please…I beg you…_

"You do know the penalty for treason is death? Don't you cousin?" His other self asked in a sickeningly pleasant voice.

Seth nodded, not looking up. "Yes, cousin. I know."

The other him looked pleased. "Then you won't be too surprised…"

"No. I won't let you." Akunaden lunged forward, knocking the other Yami off his feet and into the wall. "Enough. Any royalty you held, you lost when you began dealing with the magic of the dead."

Yami didn't know whether to cheer for Akunaden or flee and hide in the depths of the Puzzle in complete shame. _That's me. Oh, Gods, that's me._

"Father!" Seth leapt forward to stand between the now stunned figure on the floor and Akunaden. "Stop this. He needs help, not an attack."

"He is going to have you executed, you fool!" Akunaden hissed. "Look at him! Look! Tell me that is your cousin, your friend, your pharaoh. That's a monster!"

Seth looked at the sprawled, still insanely grinning, figure at his feet then shook his head. "Fine. I'll take the throne, but only till he is recovered." He turned and knelt next to his pharaoh. "Tell the court the pharaoh has taken a fever and I will act in his stead till his health is recovered."

"He will never recover, Seth." Akunaden growled. "He's gone too far down the path of forbidden magic. His mind will never recover."

"Traitor." The fallen pharaoh hissed, struggling weakly against Seth's hands. "Steal my throne. Try to kill me. Traitor."

"I don't believe that father." Seth snatched a hand back quickly as the other Yami tried to bite him. "He's strong. He just needs time."

Yami bowed his head. _Seth…I'm sorry…I'm sorry…_

"I'm sorry!" Yami woke with a start to find himself snuggled in a warm comfortable bed, with Yugi tucked under his chin making small purring sounds in his sleep. He looked wildly around, half expecting to see himself looming over him grinning, but only saw Mahaado sitting in a chair next to the bed reading a book in the soft golden glow of a candle.

His friend looked up, carefully tucking a scrap of paper in his page, "What are you sorry for this time?"

Yami pulled Yugi closer. "I…I was… Mahaado, did I..?"

"My Pharaoh?" Mahaado arched one eyebrow curiously.

"Do you know if…" Yami started again. "I tried to resurrect my son?"

"Ahmose?"

Yami winced, but nodded.

"I suppose you should talk to Seth about that." Mahaado studied his friend's distressed face a moment, then stood up. "But if it helps, the only one you ever harmed with that, was yourself."

"And Seth." Yami watched Mahaado walk to the door and poke his head out for a moment.

"Seth was, and is, quite capable of taking care of himself." The magician smiled as he turned back to Yami. "And if you don't believe me…ask him yourself."

"What…"

Mahaado smiled. "Don't worry about that now." He nodded at Yugi. "He requested that I wake him up the second you woke up. He's been worried."

"Let's pretend I haven't woken up then." Yami settled back down. "But tell me what you meant about Seth."

"He's here." Mahaado resettled in the chair. "Seto collapsed and Seth stepped in to take care of him."

Yami frowned, then nodded. "Yes, Seth is very good at that."

**Jame**

Jame growled irritably at the counter moron. "I said I wanted five Chicken Supremes Deluxe with extra fries, two Tower of Taste burgers megasized, three Salad Spinners with blue cheese, two with vinegrette, and nine Apple Popper Pies."

"We also need some more Fish Buddy Burgers." Tanaka handed her another list. "This is from accounting."

Jame squeezed her eyes shut. "Okay, add seven Fish Buddy Burgers, two more Chicken Supremes but without fries, three more Tower of Taste burgers megasized, two not megasized, and six Salad Spinners with ranch dressing."

"Ahhh, could you repeat that again?"

"Why did we do this? Why?" Jame leaned forward and hit her head against the happy sign of McDougals that was plastered on the wall.

"The cafeteria is being redecorated in new, stress relieving colors." Tanaka sounded anything up relieved of stress, "so we all came here to do an office luncheon and bond as coworkers."

"Isn't it bad enough we have to bond eight hours a day for six days a week?" Jame pushed the lists across the counter and watched the counter person try to decipher them. She turned to Tanaka, "Haven't we bonded enough?"

"I feel very bonded myself, but the lack of edible…" He eyed the contents of a passing tray and shivered. "food, got me out. That and the fumes from the stress relieving paint were giving me a head ache."

Jame nodded and took the number that was pushed across to her by the group of bewildered workers of McDougals that had clustered around to help read the lists. She wondered if she should point out she hadn't paid yet, then shrugged and followed Tanaka back to the large dinning room in the back that McDougals gave them when the starved employees of the personnel and accounting departments of Kaiba Corp stampeded through their doors.

The employees were now clustered in tiny groups, all merrily chatting in the bright, plasticy room with huge bright plasticy McDougals characters loitering around in it waving cheefully. As Tanaka plodded stoicly through the room, heading for a small corner under a poster with huge friendly purple blob that was one of McDougals' mascots, Jame trailed after him over hearing scraps of conversation.

"I can't believe that Yosha up in budgeting actually thought…"

"…he sure is a cutie. Gotta be those Kaiba…"

"…going to the dogs. Back in my day baseball teams…"

"…never found the body…"

"I can see why Mr. Kaiba decided to take a bit of time off." Tanaka sat in the tiny plastic chair that was never meant for an adult to sit in for more then three seconds. "With the gossip, the reorganization and the painting, he probably is working from his home office. His brother used to do that now and then."

Jame nodded, trying to look innocent. As far as she knew, Mr. Kaiba was still unaware that his entire company was being reorganized. She planned to tell him, sooner or later. Considering he hadn't even bothered to call her in the four days, she wasn't too worried about the sooner part of the equation. And she was gleefully awaiting the later part.

"Rumor has it that he's going to be merging Kaiba Corp with Industrial Illusions." Tanaka wiggled uncomfortably in his chair. "I don't believe it, but with Seto Kaiba's death and all the changes, rumors are starting up all over."

Jame shrugged. "I doubt it's more then a bit of house keeping."

The room hushed as the floor rocked gently under their feet.

Someone laughed, "Earthquake."

Everyone started chattering again, this time most of the conversations revolved around earthquakes and a few bets were being taken for the number of aftershocks that were likely.

Jame settled into her plastic seat and wiggled around trying to find a comfortable angle. "From what I've heard, Mr. Kaiba has no plans to change anything." Giving up, she took off her suit coat and put in on the seat for extra cushioning. "He seems to want to keep everything, even the office, just as his brother left it."

Tanaka shook his head. "He's not coping well."

A deeper, more violent quake rocked through the building. From the front of the restaurant, a few surprised voices could be heard and the sound of something shattering.

"Wow. That was a big one." Someone called.

"Job opening up front." Someone else laughed.

A few nervous giggles sounded and someone called back, "Does that count as an aftershock?"

"I'd say main event." Another voice called.

Jame looked around at her coworkers, who had gone back to their gossiping and betting and returned to Tanaka. "He's coping pretty well. Everyone needs time when they loose someone."

"How long does it take to make a salad?" Someone groused.

"They're growing the lettuce."

Jame hauled herself to her feet. "I'll go see."

"Hey, get me a shake while your out there."

"Me too."

"Coke for me."

Jame gritted her teeth. "Make a list."

The voices muttered a few minutes. Jame shook her head and headed for the door. The door was stuck. She pushed against it, opening it with a large shriek of metal, and looked around. The room behind her became quiet.

The front of McDougals was wrecked. The large plate glass windows in the front were blown inwards, leaving shattered glass sparkling through a litter of containers, cups and wrappers. A few people's coats, jackets and trays still sat at tables abandoned. Outside the once windows, the streets were also deserted and oddly dark for a sunny, cloudless day. A fine rain of dust swirled downwards.

"Oh…" Jame breathed, watching as a small wind blew more dust and a collection of papers through the street outside the restaurant. Cars were now coated in a layer of ash. All the people, who normally would be bustling in and out of the lunch time rush, were missing, leaving the street eerily silent.

Voices raised behind her.

"What the hell…"

"Oh my God."

Jame stood frozen till a hand landed on her shoulder. Tanaka stood behind her looking out at the scene.

"Better close the door." Tanaka pulled her back into the room and shut the door.

Jame reached for her cell phone, dialing Kaiba Corp's receptionist. The number rang, and rang, and rang. "Damn, no one's picking up." Jame noticed a few other people making calls. She tried Kado's number.

"Kado." His familiar voice barked back at her from the tiny ear piece.

"Hey, what happened?" Jame felt relieved hearing the security chief's voice. "We're…"

"Where are you? How many people are with you?" Kado's voice snapped at her.

"McDougals. Me and Tanaka and the most of the staff from accounting and personnel." Jame tried to do a head count, but the crowd and the friendly plastic figures made things tricky. "We felt the quake. What happened?"

Kado grunted noncommittally, "Hang on."

Jame glowered at the phone, then shrugged to Tanaka, "Well, whatever it is Kado is still Kado."

Tanaka nodded, busy dialing on his own cell. "Not surprised. I can't reach my secretary."

"Jame." Kado called her back.

"Spill it Kado, tell me what's going on." Jame growled into her phone.

"I've got a bus coming for you and the rest. Give me your exact location." Kado growled back.

"Hey! Give a little Kado."

"Someone just blew up Kaiba Corp tower. Now tell me where you are so I can get your asses out of there."

Jame blinked at the phone. "Oh…"

**-00-**

She smiled as Duke walked back into the small apartment that was in the upper floors of his game shop. Her puppet had done well. She wrinkled her nose at the smell of paint that still clung to his overalls, but considered it part of the price she'd have to pay.

"I don't suppose you saw little Mokuba, did you pet?" She watched Duke sway as he stood in the center of the room.

He shook his head slowly. His once bright eyes were now dull and lifeless.

"Too bad." She leaned back in her chair. "Maybe we lucked out and got him anyway." She laughed a hollow, empty sound. "We can always hope. Now, about the mansion…"

* * *

Review please.


	19. Boys

AN: I'm stuck home with the flu so here's a new chapter early. I hope you enjoy!

* * *

**Psyche**

Chapter 19: Boys

* * *

OCs

**Ahmose: (Egyptian for: The moon is born)** Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on**: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame**: Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon**: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara**: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori**: **(Japanese for: Ice)** The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr**: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be.He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt.

**Shimo**: **(Japanese for: Frost)** The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai**: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

* * *

**Yuai**

The mass of leather straps and rings hit the floor with a huge **THUNK**, causing Yuai to jump and look around to where her darling husband stood glowering over the mess. They had been packing for their extended vacation in the other dimension, and while Yuai vainly dug through her wardrobe looking for something that didn't glitter, float, or make her look vaguely like a Victoria's Secret model stuck on the cover of a bodice ripper, Ledowr had been rummaging through various chests and drawers.

"What are you doing with a horse harness?" Yuai shook her head, "And do I even want to know what its doing in our bedroom."

"It's my costume, not a horse harness." He gave it a disgusted kick, noting that just dropping it two feet had left inch deep dents in the mahogany floor of their room.

Yuai came over and gave it and him an awed look. "You can wear that and move?"

He just glowered at her for a few moments, then stalked back over to another chest and pulled out a flimsy nightie with a corset. "Here's yours, love." He tossed it to her then reached back in and pulled out a heavy, jewel laden crown and a glowing orb the size of a soccer ball. "Let's not forget your accessories."

"What the hell do you mean, costume?" She held up the tiny wisp of transparent cloth and the corset that had rather wickedly sharp metal studs along the top. She worried about the fact that some of the sharpest were located under her arms. She eyed her beloved suspiciously. "Is this for some kind of kinky, bondage game?"

"I take it you haven't gotten a good look at my card." He walked over to her and placed the crown on her head.

The metal monstrosity instantly gave her a headache, and a neck ache, as she tried to keep her head straight. "No, not really. You never came up." She thought back to the small statue she had once had of him. It had been covered in a layer of black straps, metal rings and other worrisome fashion accessories. At least worrisome to the one wearing it. She remembered thinking that the statue's clothes were pretty cool, when she first sat down to inspect it after finding it in her things. She looked at the real life counterpart of that outfit and shivered, half in lust and half in horror as she pictured her love in all that leather and metal.

"Don't even think it." He eyed her suspiciously.

"Think what?" She tried to lift one strap of his costume, but only managed to shift it a tiny bit.

"I'm not putting it on."

She nodded, "Remind me to introduce you to the wonders of latex when we get to our new home."

"What's latex?"

**Jonouchi**

He was hiding well away from all dragons, both the scaly kind and the brown haired, blue eyed kind. He was well aware that Seth was probably hunting for him through the castle, so he was therefore hiding up on the castle walls, tucked between the gate house and an inner buttress. He had a great view of the gardens, the walls, the main entrance to the gardens, and the courtyard. He also had two great escape routes, just incase Seth managed to locate him. Which, Jo had already decided, he would allow, just as soon as the brunet's attention started to waver.

That was the whole point, after all, to keep Seth's attention on him.

He stretched out against the tower and watched his friends sitting down by the fountain in the garden below. Yami and Yugi were, from all the gossip he overheard, still sound asleep, and Yuai and Ledowr were probably off tending to court business, but Mokuba, Honda, Mai, Anzu, Ryou, Malik, Bakura, and Marik were out in the garden enjoying the spring weather. He couldn't hear what they were talking about, but he got one message clearly. Actually, he figured it out about three seconds after Seth had disappeared out of the garden after confessing who he really was. The message was simple. He was in trouble.

It wasn't that he thought that Seth would hurt him. He figured that part out after a few minutes of thinking about how Seth had treated him since he had stepped in for Kaiba. It was the simple, simple message that was even now being conveyed to him from the group below that frightened him.

Ryou was sitting on the rim of the fountain, with Bakura sprawled on the pavement in front of him, leaning back against his hikari's legs. The slender light was talking earnestly to Anzu about something and absently sliding his fingers through Bakura's spiky locks, causing the wild yami to close his eyes in pure, unadulterated pleasure. Jo could almost feel Bakura purring, even across the garden.

Nearby, on a heavy blanket that seemed to have a few dozen pillows scattered on it, Malik and Marik were laying watching the sky. Malik's head on his yami's shoulder as they lazily pointed at various clouds, birds, or passing dragons.

Jo didn't have to go to Yami's room to know that he and Yugi were curled around each other so tight you would have to look close to figure out whose hand was whose and which leg belonged to which.

He even had heard a whisper of the message when he saw Yuai and Ledowr, Yuai glittering like snow and sunshine with Ledowr faithfully lurking at her side with his shadow cast skin and wicked eyes.

Light and dark. Yami and hikari. Yin and yang. The light loves the dark and the dark loves the light. But where did that leave him? Now that Seto had his own dark yami who would know his every desire before it was spoken, who would comfort hurts that no other could see, who would love him, know him, protect him and heal him, where did that leave a plain, ordinary high school kid that would probably never graduate, had a stellar future as a short order cook at a greasy spoon to look forward to, and was stupid enough to get caught by a roving loony and be turned into a fuc…

Jo shivered, hugging himself. _It's not my fault. It's not my fault._ He was pulled out of his thoughts as Seth strode into the garden, nodding a slight greeting to the others. Malik waved half heartedly at something, and Ryou shook his head, causing the priest to make an impatient gesture and stride away, deeper into the garden.

Jo grinned. Seth didn't know it, but Jo held the winning cards in this little duel. A hand mostly given to him by Seto. After winning an extended battle with Seto's workaholic schedule, masochistic need to sacrifice himself, and surprising lack of self worth, he knew how to handle Seth. He had to get Seth's attention and keep it focused on himself. Seto had also given him a second card he needed to ensure his victory. Jo knew every single way there was to turn Seth into a puddle of panting hormones. The final winning, card Seth had handed Jo himself. The game they were now playing. After weeks of frustration, of having dragons appear just as things were getting interesting, Jo felt he had a handle on the game. _All is fair and turn about is fair play and all that…_

The only worrisome spot in the plan was…what if Seth got too involved too fast? What then? What would happen if the planned interruption didn't interrupt? What if Seth ordered E'on away? What if Seth decided that he'd deal with Seto later and took what Jo meant only to tease with? What if Seth didn't stop? What if Seth forced him to…

_Stop that. Everything's fine. Just fine._ He watched as his friends stood up, brushing themselves off as the noontime bells in the city rang, calling everyone to lunch. Seth stalked irritably out of a woodsy side path and prowled menacingly toward the castle entrance. Jo grinned, stood, and ran down the castle wall, so that he could arrive in the dinning room before Seth. If he ran fast enough, he could probably get his plate and be sitting there innocently when the priest stomped in. _See. Fine. I've got it all together._

**Yami**

Yami and Yugi walked into the dinning room to find Jonouchi sitting placidly at a table eating his lunch. He waved happily as they wove around a band of Bite Shoes that were clomping around searching for unwary feet. Yugi, wrapped sleepily around Yami's waist, blinked owlishly as one tried to take a taste of his shoelace.

"Jonouchi." Yami sat down next to him, settling Yugi on his other side.

Yugi gave him a soft smile, just before laying his head on the table and starting to snore in cute little snuffles.

Jo nodded, then waved again as Yuai and Ledowr came in and looked around for a seat. She waved back and came over to them, leaving her significant other to trail after her or stay fuming silently at the door. Mokuba was the next in, and stood gawking as Cherubin, the Fire Knight, complete with huge studded mace, lumbered past with the scantily clad Performance of the Sword girl hanging adoringly from his arm.

Yuai sat across from Jo and nodded to Yami, "Good morning sleepy head."

Yami blinked, remembering the last time he looked into that face, then dropped his head. "Yuai."

"At least he doesn't have brain damage." Ledowr stood behind his wife looking like he was contemplating chewing on the table.

Mokuba slid into the seat next to Jo. "Hey, where were you? Seth's been looking everywhere for you."

Jo could barely suppress the evil grin that wanted to spread itself across his face, so he took a quick sip of water and coughed.

"I'm sure he knows that." Seth stalked up to the table and glared at the blond, then bowed respectfully to Yami. "My pharaoh."

Yami, still looking fixedly at the plate that a Beaver Warrior had just placed in front of him, nodded and unconsciously cuddled his hikari closer. _Aibou? Wake up please. I…uhh…_He glanced over to the woman he once murdered and found her poking at Ledowr, trying to get him to sit down next to her. He hesitatingly shot a quick look at his priest, and found him sitting next to Mokuba and glaring accusingly at Jo, who was doing his best to ooze innocence.

"Hey, look they have those funny purple tarts." Mokuba started grabbing for food as miniature furry warriors started brining dishes to the table.

Ledowr, poked into submission by his wife, sat grumpily down, just as Ryou, Bakura, Honda, Anzu and Mai strolled into the room. Bakura gleefully kicked a path through the Bite Shoes, then stopped a second to nod at Diabound, who was wrapped in the coils of an overly amorous Electric Lizard.

"Hehehe." Bakura shoved Ryou into the seat next to Yugi, eyeing his monster as it wiggled uncomfortably at the table next to theirs. "See if I forgive you anytime soon. Looser."

Anzu and Mai sat next to Yuai, quietly arguing about fountains, koi and if it was possible to have an inside koi pond. Honda uneasily settled himself next to Ledowr, as Malik and Marik dropped into seats next to Bakura.

"He wasn't a bad monster." Seth glanced over as Diabound yelped and started sucking on an electric burn on his tail. "He just had a bad influence in his life."

"Are you saying something priest?" Bakura leaned to peer around Ryou.

"Did I name names?" Seth borrowed a bit of the innocence radiating off Jo. "Does someone have a guilty conscience?"

"I got over feeling guilty a long, long time ago." Bakura snagged a wiggling vegetable that looked like pink broccoli and chomped on it. It shrieked in pain and went limp, leaking startlingly red juice over the tomb robber's fingers.

"Oh God, tell me that that isn't lunch." Ryou looked horrified as Bakura curiously shook the limp, pink stalk. The rest of the bowl of pink broccoli wailed piteously as it flopped lifelessly in the yami's hand.

Yuai grabbed the bowl and signaled a passing beaver. "Take these outside and let them loose."

The broccoli gave a half hearted cheer and Bakura looked sick. "Tell me I didn't murder a piece of broccoli."

**Yami, Yugi, Seth, Yuai, Ledowr, and Kallon**

So far, Seth thought, Yami seemed to be taking it well. When first informed that he had just been granted the honor of being the ruler of the Shadow Realm for the next five thousand years, he had only nodded and sat down rather quickly, almost squishing his still sleeping hikari. After the first shock had worn off, he had made some masterful arguments about why he wasn't fit to rule. When the arguments had been answered, brushed aside or had be plainly ignored, he had resorted to pacing and frowning, which, while might have been personally satisfying for him, did nothing to win him his freedom.

Seth settled back into his comfortable arm chair, and watched his pharaoh wiggle like a fish on a hook. He sipped a frosty glass of white wine and nibbled at a tray of quite ordinary crackers that sat on a small side table at his elbow. After a quiet ceremony to pay homage to the fallen vegetable, and a quick burial in the garden, lunch had been declared a disaster and everyone had bolted off to see if anyone had any candy bars tucked in the pockets of their other clothes. Everyone except Yuai, Ledowr, Kallon, Yami, Yugi, and himself.

"Think of it as repaying society for your crimes." Ledowr, who had been snarling silently at Yami, sneered.

"I hardly think making someone into the ruler of an entire realm is a punishment." Yami had gathered himself together enough to cross his arms and look at least something like his old self. A rather shaken, completely lost version of his old self, but Seth was pleased to see that it was at least a stable, fighting version.

"I'd say poor innocent pharaoh, but I don't feel all that much pity for you." Ledowr turned away and stomped to the window.

"I don't…" Yami began, but this time Kallon cut him off.

"You'll do a fine job." He was once again in his chair with his grumbling book. "You do have previous experience."

Seth took a sip of his wine and watched his pharaoh. He could tell that Yami was more then happy to take the position they were offering. He also knew exactly why Yami didn't want the position. It was curled up in a chair with a silly smile on its face, occasionally blinking open half aware eyes to check that Yami was still there.

Yuai was sitting in the window seat, smiling happily. "It's only five thousand years Pharaoh. I'm sure the time will fly."

Seth wondered if the smile was genuine. He doubted it. He'd overheard Ledowr and Kallon shortly after he'd woken up to find Seto in trouble, and had heard what the past five thousand years had been like for Yuai. He was just pleased that she wasn't trying to chew Yami's kidneys out with her teeth.

"Yuai, I…" Yami looked over to the slender blond girl, then dropped his head looking like he wanted to cringe. "Would it make you happy? Is this what you need from me?"

"Yes, it would make me happy." Yuai nodded, looking dreamily away, "Oh yes, very happy."

Yami sighed. His shoulders rounding in defeat.

Seth stepped in. "I'm sure, with a bit of work, you could modify the barrier spell to allow Yugi to step back and forth from this world to the other."

Yami glanced over to him then looked away. Seth frowned. He'd noticed his pharaoh's reluctance to look at him since lunch.

"Is that what is bothering you?" Kallon pursed his lips thoughtfully. "Seth is right. It wouldn't take much to modify the barrier." He looked away, lost in thought. "No, not hard at all."

Yami looked over to Yugi, then to Yuai. "Alright. I will do this. If this is what will make you happy again."

Yuai nodded and stood. She walked over to Yami with a smile and touched his shoulder. "Yes, I will be happy again." She nodded to Yugi. "We'll all be happy again. You will be happy being a ruler. Yugi will be happy, because you are happy. And we," she gestured to Kallon and Ledowr, "will be happy without having to deal with the day to day idiocies of the court." She smiled at Seth. "And Seth will be happy, as soon as he finds a Mouse Trap game."

Seth straighten in his chair. He'd forgotten about that. He felt a wide grin trying to work itself free. _Ah, my light, you need to get well soon. We have a game of Mouse Trap to play._

**Seto and Seth**

Seto was still sleeping in the small room on the cot. The soft blanket that had covered him had twisted around a bit and one slender foot now peeked out from the edge. His skin, while still pale, and a bit pasty, wasn't shadowed as heavily by bruises. The cuts that struck across his still terrifyingly thin form, were healing nicely. He even put on a bit of weight.

Seth sat down next to him, feeling satisfied. _I should have brought him here in the first place. He is after all me, and I have always felt better in a temple then even in my palace quarters. _He ran a hand through Seto's hair, smiling. _It's quieter here, isn't it my light? More peaceful to rest in the care of the Gods._ He brushed his fingers along Seto's cheek then nudged his other slightly. "Seto, hikari, time to wake up."

The only response he got was a slight shift in his other's breathing, which almost immediately went back to the way it was before. Seth smiled and picked his light up, carrying him out the door and down the long twisting stairs till they came to the main room of his soul, the temple room they had initially passed through. Seth stopped in the center of the room and carefully set Seto down on the floor, then sat down next to him.

"My light, you need to wake up. I have coddled you too much, I fear." He gently arranged Seto on his lap, so that his light was sitting between his crossed legs, with his back against his chest. Seto's head rested against his shoulder. "You need to rebuild your strength, which you will not do sleeping." He gave Seto a rougher shake. "Now, wake."

Seto blinked slowly back to awareness. "Who…"

Seth smiled. "Worry about that later." He shifted Seto slightly into a more comfortable position.

Seto turned his head and looked suspiciously at his doppelganger. "You aren't here. There are no such things as yamis."

"Really?" Seth smiled at him. "And how do you explain Yami, Bakura, and Marik?"

"I don't." Seto tried to summon a glare, but only managed a half focused squint. "I don't have a yami." His jaws stretched into a wide yawn.

"Really?" Seth brushed his hair out of his eyes, pleased that his hikari was showing a bit of fight. He was also pleased when Seto irritably tossed his head, trying to avoid his hand.

"You are not my yami." Seto frowned a bit, but it was ruined by the fact that he swayed slightly when he did it.

Seth steadied him. "I guess I have to be someone else's yami then. I wonder how I got here?"

"See. I would never have a yami who could get lost like that." Seto nodded, satisfied with his argument.

"I see." Seth watched him trying to summon a glare. "Then who's yami am I?"

Seto looked confused a moment, then gave a semi-decisive nod. "You're not a yami. You're a hallucination."

"Am I your hallucination?" Seth grinned as Seto worked that out. He'd been planning on making his hikari meditate to strengthen his mind, but arguing worked just as well. They could always meditate later.

"Since I am the one seeing you, you would have to be mine." Seto didn't sound happy with his conclusion.

"So you're hallucinating that you have a yami?" Seth wrapped his arms around his light, steadying him against his body as Seto swayed again.

"Yes, apparently I am." Seto slumped tiredly against him.

"Are you upset that you're hallucinating, or that you're hallucinating about having a yami?" Seth chuckled softly.

Seto's voice, however, was sad when he replied. "Having a yami. It always sounded so…"

"So what?"

Seto curled against him, closing his eyes, and shivering with exhaustion. "Gozaburo… never trust anyone. I trusted Jo, but Duke… Mokuba will leave me… so will you."

"Because I'm a hallucination?" Seth rested his cheek against Seto's hair, gently rocking the fragile figure in his arms. He felt Seto nod. "Well, my light, I have some bad news for you."

Seto tensed.

"I'm staying. You'll just have to keep hallucinating me." He felt Seto relax against him. "You are my light, and you'll just have to get used to it."

He smiled as he heard his stubborn other mutter, "No, I don't."

**The Whole Gang**

Ryou paced back and forth in the castle's reception hall, looking worried and glancing occasionally up the stairs. Jo sprawled at the base of one while pillar kept half and eye on him and the other half on Seth who was sitting cross legged next to him, apparently meditating. Yugi and Yami were laying on their stomachs a few feet away playing Gin with Honda, Anzu and Mai, Malik and Marik. Marik was cheating outrageously, but it didn't seem to faze Yami too much, and the others were busy slurping up purple drinks that fizzed small pink and blue sparkles. Surrounding everyone were piles of luggage, one overfed and sleepy Rainbow Flower, and four depressed looking dragons.

"Now remember to feed Rainbow every morning, or it'll start singing off key." E'on stroked Rainbow's leaves and refused to even look at Jo. "And be careful of…well everything. You're not that bright and you'll get hurt."

_Thanks E'on. Love you too._ Jo leaned back against the pillar and looked up at the ceiling that soared high above them.

_And remember to get plenty of sleep and food. _E'on continued his litany of instructions. _You won't get your strength back if you don't eat._

Jo just nodded.

"Where is he?" Ryou looked worriedly up the curving staircase. "You don't think anything happened to him, do you?"

"Gin." Yami fanned his cards to prove his win, then looked over at the white haired hikari. "I'm sure he would have told you."

Malik sighed as he tossed his cards down in defeat, as his yami snarled and tore his cards up. "He's just up stairs."

"Yes, yes. You're right." Ryou continued to pace, then stopped as footfalls were heard descending the stairs.

Yuai, Kallon and Ledowr came down with Bakura skulking behind them. Kallon looked around at the luggage, the card game, the forlorn dragons, Seth and Jo. "Ready to go?"

"Ready!" Yugi bounced to his feet. "I can't wait to get home."

"Food, real food." Honda clambered to his feet with a grin.

Seth opened his evilly glittering eyes and grinned sharkily, "Mousetrap!"

Yami pulled himself up and nodded. "We're ready."

Ledowr snarled wordlessly at him, then stalked away, growling over his shoulder. "You only have a few weeks, pharaoh. Wrap everything up and get your ass back here."

"True, you will need to be back in…" Kallon looked away, doing a few mental calculations. "I'd say sixteen days at the most."

"What happens if he isn't." Yugi came to stand next to his darkness, slipping on hand into his.

"Oh, quite a mess really. We're going to have to transfer quite a few bindings to the pharaoh. It'll take us at least fifteen days to complete the initial work. If he isn't her to receive the bindings things will start getting loose." Kallon didn't look to upset at the thought. He even smiled fondly. "I remember once, Yuai and Ledowr went on an extended honeymoon and…"

Yuai blushed. "Let's just detour around that bit of memory lane, hmmm?" She glared at him out of the corner of her eye and muttered, "That was nine thousand years ago. Can't you let that go yet?"

"No dearest, not yet." Kallon hummed happily.

"I will be back in two weeks." Yami promised.

"Let's get going." Bakura hoisted his and Ryou's packs. "I've got an Eye to hunt and I'm not getting it done here."

Everyone started grabbing their luggage. Marik scooped up his things, then helped Malik settle his pack comfortably onto his shoulders. Yami and Yugi only had one pack between them, and they had a quick game of rock, paper, scissors, which Yugi won, to see who would carry the pack.

Jo shouldered his pack and hugged his dragon. _I'll be back with Yami and Yugi. We can go swimming in that ocean you kept telling me about._

The little dragon sniffled. _Watch out for wandering crazy people. Wear warm clothes. Look both ways before crossing a street. Don't go swimming after you eat._

Seth gracefully stood up and bowed elegantly to Kallon and Yuai. "I'll be returning as soon as I can as well to assist my pharaoh. I hope you…"

He was cut off as he was abruptly body slammed to the floor by three weeping Blue Eyes._ Don't go! We just got you back and you're leaving us! We love you! Please stay. We'll be good. We'll find you a Mousetrap game!_ _Pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease! _

_Hush. Seto and I will be back in a couple of weeks._ Seth wiggled uncomfortably. _You need to stay here and keep an eye on the other Yuai in the Mirror._ He managed to free one arm and give one of them, he wasn't sure which, a soothing pat. _I won't leave you again._

Bakura grinned down at the inelegantly, squished priest. "Time to go."

* * *

**Review. Yes you, I'm talking to you. You know you want to… Just do it! Hit the review key and let your voice be heard.**


	20. Ruins

**AN:** Sorry this is late. I had finals to deal with. By the way, does anyone else feel guilt when you close a file and the little Microsoft Word avatar –I have the little dog. I evilly named him Jou.- has to go away, then when you realize that you forgot something, you have to reopen the file and you make him come back?

**Psyche**

Chapter 20: Ruins

* * *

OCs 

**Ahmose: (Egyptian for: The moon is born)** Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on**: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame**: Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon**: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara**: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori**: **(Japanese for: Ice)** The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr**: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be.He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt.

**Shimo**: **(Japanese for: Frost)** The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai**: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

* * *

**The Mansion**

"Ummmm….so can we stay at your place?" Mokuba looked over at Yugi, who nodded numbly back.

They had landed back in the mortal realm in a park just a few blocks from the Kaiba Mansion, so they had all raced quickly down the twilight streets hoping, futilely, that no one would notice a band of tunic and hose wearing twins, a blond clutching a grumpy flower pot, complete with a flower that was warbling "Day-O" merrily off key, two scantily clad Renaissance noble women, a small, wild haired boy wearing a scarlet cape that flapped dramatically behind him, a tall brunet clutching a huge stack of baggage, and a supposedly dead multi-billionaire taking a quick jog through the most affluent section of town.

Seth stood looking at what had once been a magnificent statue of one of his Blue Eyes, semi-shocked at the language his hikari was using. Seto had woken up and wandered into their soul corridor when they had arrived back in his home world. He hadn't showed any interest in taking control, which Seth wasn't entirely sure he was ready for yet –though after seeing some of the "wonders" of this modern age, he was more than ready to let him- but had sat down and merely watched through his eyes, occasionally making snippy comments when Seth nearly shrieked over such things as streetlights, automobiles, and the latest fashions. When they reached his home, Seto had taken one look and started raging.

The mansion was in ruins. Wisps of smoke still rose above shattered blackened beams that poked out of the foundation like blackened fingers pointing accusing fingers at the sky. The once magnificent fountain with the Blue Eyes statue in the center was shattered with one of the dragon's metal wings bent in pathetic twist against its side. A long line of yellow police tape was clumsily stretched across the gates and the heavy smell of burning trash hung in a shroud around the estate.

Jonouchi clutched his flower tighter and stepped behind Seth, looking uncertain. Seth, still listening to Seto curse and secretly thankful that his "innocent" hikari wasn't in HIS soulroom shocking all the gods, reached back and pulled the blond to his side. "Whatever happened is over, Jo. Whoever did this is probably far away by now."

"Let me guess," Bakura looked disgustedly through the gate at the ruins, "The other Yuai is also a closet pyro."

"Not terribly imaginative." Marik stood with his arms crossed over his chest and head tipped thoughtfully to one side, looking at what was left of the mansion with the air of a disappointed art critic. "It lacks statement. No flare."

Mai, standing next to him, shook her head. "No it has statement. It clearly says, "I hate you. Die." I think it's the execution that's off. It probably was one of those performance things." She gestured to the ruins. "It probably had lots of flare while it was happening. We just missed the show."

Honda, dropping their luggage, stretched, cracking the kinks out of his back. "I think we need to get the hell out of here." He nodded to were an old, curious woman was peeking through her hedges at them from across the street.

"Anybody got a cell phone?" Anzu looked hopefully around.

Mai, Honda, Yugi, Ryou, Marik, and Malik pulled theirs out.

"Great! Is anybody's cell phone charged?"

The cell phones dispiritedly went away.

"Oh man. You guys carry your own things." Honda took one small bag out of the stack and started down the street.

**The Game Shop**

The game shop looked as warm and comforting as he remembered it. He paused in the doorway of the shop, grinning as Grandpa's sleepy, happy voice called a hello to them from the upstairs apartment. All the time that he had been…away… that he had been away, he had imagined himself doing the things he had loved to do, being in the places he had loved to be, seeing his friends, having long conversations, being with Seto, eating. He had imagined coming into the game shop, calling a greeting and being met with smiles from Yugi and his grandpa.

"Hey Grandpa!" Yugi was already running up the stairs, "You aren't going to believe who we have with us!"

Jo, unable to get a wide happy grin off his face, set his Rainbow Flower down carefully on the counter and dropped his pack on the floor. A second later he was wrapped in Grandpa's arms.

"My boy, my boy…" The old man hugged him tight. "Give an old man a heart attack…"

Jo hugged him back, darting a glance at a suddenly tense Seth, and giving him a reassuring nod.

Grandpa pushed him back and held him at arms length. "Let me see you. Let me see you." He got abruptly squished into another hug. "Thank all the gods, you're all right."

Jo nodded and patted his back.

"Jo's going through a silent phase." Yami nodded in greeting as he passed. "He'll have to tell you about it later."

Grandpa let Jo go, and stood smiling at them all. "I see you're fine as well, Ryou."

"Yeah… Fine." The slender hikari stood panting next to his darkness, silently grumbling about abnormally fit yamis and how the heck did Yugi, who had even shorter legs then he did, manage to jog two and a half miles without breaking a sweat. He could understand Seto..err…Seth…whoever… managing it, and Jo, with his naturally athletic body. Marik was a freak, so he didn't count, and he was pleased to see Malik and Mokuba wheezing pathetically at his side. Yami, he could guess, used Shadow Magic to cheat. Okay, so maybe his yami did too. Anzu and Mai had dropped back after the first block and were strolling along somewhere behind them, with Honda keeping a careful watch over them. But how did that explain Yugi bouncing about like the Energizer Bunny on speed?

Grandpa nodded at Kaiba, "Good to see you too."

"Shimon?" Seth finally managed to choke out. He hadn't expected this.

Grandpa looked doubtfully at him.

"Gramps, meet Seth. Seth meet Yugi's grandfather, Solomon." Bakura waved casually as he passed by, then yelled as he jogged up the stairs. "I get the shower pharaoh. I called it three blocks ago."

"Too late, Yugi got there first. But I've got his Banana Bonanza ice cream and his hot fudge." The pharaoh's voice came back. "Revenge is indeed sweet."

Jo grabbed his flower and raced up the stairs. The apartment was just as he had dreamed, warm, welcoming, with the faint smell of coffee. Yami and Bakura were already digging into a carton of ice cream, with a collection of bowls sitting on the counter next to them. The kitchen table, where he had dreamed of sitting with his friends and laughing, sat, worn and beautiful in the center of the floor, with a faded yellow tablecloth and a stray deck of playing cards on it. He bypassed a brewing argument about the ice cream, and dug out the coffee and coco.

Mokuba fell tiredly into a chair at the table, looking warily at the silent, if no less threatening argument, that had started in one corner of the kitchen. Bakura was growling silently and waving a ice cream scoop at Yami, who was snarling quietly back and threatening the thief with a large spoon.

Malik and Ryou sunk into chairs next to him, nodding tiredly. "Tea. I want real tea, that doesn't swirl in a cup all by itself." Ryou sighed.

Malik moaned, "Food, real food…"

Seth, looking confused and slightly rumpled, slipped into the kitchen and went to stand next to Jo, muttering, "He hugged me. I can't believe he hugged me. He never used to hug me, so why start now?"

_Because, he's Grandpa, and he's evil. You'll get to love him for that._ Jo handed a cup of coffee and coco to Seth and shooed him to the table.

Seth took a sip, wrinkled his nose, and handed the cup back. "No coco, Jo. Seto says it's better without the coco."

Jo turned around and looked into Seth's eyes. _Seto?_ He gently touched Seth's face with a finger tip. _Seto, you okay?_

"He's in a mood." Seth edged around him, and reached for another cup and the coffee pot. "He's been cursing non-stop since the mansion."

Jo nodded, with a silent laugh. He really didn't have to dream that one, and for once he was glad that Seth was standing there and not Seto. His love would be in a incoherent rage, and selfish as it sounded, he didn't want his warm happy moment spoiled by his lover's ranting. Once Seth had gotten his coffee, Jo shooed him back to the table. Yami and Bakura had divided the banana ice cream to their satisfaction and he could hear the girls and Honda coming up the stairs with Grandpa. Upstairs, Yugi was calling down for someone to order takeout, and Mokuba, Ryou, and Malik were discussing the deck of playing cards and fingering them speculatively.

"Anybody call Jo's dad and sister yet?" Honda, who had somehow ended up carrying the girls' luggage upstairs, asked as he plopped into a seat next to Malik.

Jo grabbed the phone and handed it to him, tapping it pointedly.

"That would be a no." Honda started dialing.

"Anybody order takeout?" Yugi wandered in toweling his hair dry.

Bakura leapt towards the door, elbowing Yami out of the way. "I called it pharaoh. Go back to your bananas."

"I live here. I should…"

"I'm a guest. Treat me nice."

"Fuck you, thief."

"I called that first, pharaoh." Malik grinned around a mouthful of sweetness. "Back before we had bodies."

"Take him. Actually shower together and save water." Yami shoved Bakura into him and made a dive for the door.

Bakura caught his foot and dragged him back. "Why don't you two fuck each other on the table while I shower. There are some things even I shouldn't witness."

"Let go of my boot, thief." Yami thrashed, kicking Bakura in the face and knocking him into Mokuba.

"Hey, you made me drop my spoon." Mokuba elbowed his way toward the drawer. "If your going to do stuff in front of me that my big brother would object to, could you do it when Seth isn't here to tattle?"

Seth, idly listening to his hikari snarl and wondering what possessed Seto to call coffee a drink, much less a good one, shrugged. "You're how old? Thirteen? You should be looking for a wife. Actually, for a boy in your station, you should have been married long ago. I'll talk to Seto about it." Fortunately, only Seth could hear Seto's yowl of protest.

Honda had one finger pressed to his ear and was yelling into the phone. "Yeah, Serenity. It was all some freaky, freak who kidnapped Seto and Jo. They're both back safe and… what's that? I can't…Are you crying… Serenity, don't cry…come on baby, it's all right…No I can't put Jo on the phone…he's…" Honda looked around desperately. "He's in the shower."

"Stay away from the shower, Blondie." Bakura clambered over Yami and raced up the stairs, cackling gleefully.

Grandpa, holding his cell phone, looked around, "Chinese food? Or Italian?"

"Pizza!" Yugi yelled from under the towel.

"Chinese." Anzu and Mai chimed in together, settling next to Malik and getting dealt into whatever game they were playing.

"Chinese." Malik raised his head from his hand of cards.

"I don't care as long as it doesn't move." Ryou shivered, and slid two cards across the table.

Marik, snitching his hikari's dessert and stuffing the ice cream in his mouth, mumbled, "Chinese."

Jo pointed to Yugi with a grin.

Yami, annoyed, growled, "Chinese."

Mokuba, elbowing his way back to his seat, grunted, "Chinese."

Seth, looking annoyed, smiled nastily. "Seto keeps yelling Chinese, so I'll say pizza."

"Oooooh, you're gonna get it." Mokuba grinned.

Honda still on the other phone, pointed toward the girls, then startled. "No, no baby. I'm here. Yeah, you and your dad should get over here right now." Jo stood next to him with pressed his ear against the other side of the phone, listening to his sister's voice. "Jo really wants to see you."

"Okay, Chinese food wins." Grandpa started dialing, as a chorus of cheers and a few towel muffled boos filled the room.

"Okay, baby, we'll be waiting." Honda grinned into the phone a second then clicked it off.

Jo looked at him reproachfully.

"Hey, she and your dad are on the way." He grabbed Jo and hauled him back to the table by the neck. "You're such a goof. They had to get off the phone to get over here to see your sorry ass."

Seth made a threatening sound as Jo and Honda started wrestling and started getting up.

Yami pushed him back into his chair. "Let them be. They're only playing."

Seth looked mutinously at his pharaoh. "He' been hurt. He needs time to heal."

Yami opened his mouth, thought a second, then shut it, and started again. "He needs to prove himself. To start testing his own strength. What better way then against someone he knows would never hurt him."

Seth snorted, but settled back down.

Yami watched him a moment then turned away to pick an argument with Marik, whispering, "And who should know better then you and me?"

**Honda**

The shop was empty, except for him and Honda. Upstairs he could hear Mai and Bakura arguing over a hand of gin. Yugi, Ryou, Malik and Mokuba had abandoned the kitchen and the fainter sounds of video carnage could be heard in the background.

"…slapped Serenity and then you're dad…" Honda paused in the middle of his story. "Are you even listening to me?"

Jo nodded, then stood up as a car pulled up to the curb. Serenity was stumbling out of the car before it even came to a full stop, and was running towards the shop. Jo's dad, carelessly parked the car and was out and at his daughters heels before she even got the door open.

She stopped abruptly as she saw Jo coming towards her, then with a cry threw herself into his arms sobbing. Jo's dad came up and crushed both his children into a hug.

Honda smiled, happy for his friend, but felt a bit out of place as Serenity, Jo and their dad all stood clinging tightly to each other crying.

"Ssst."

Honda looked around to find Anzu, Mokuba, and Yugi all perched on the stairs. They waved him over and pointed back up towards the apartment. Honda took one more quick look at the happy, tearful family, then followed the others back to the kitchen.

"We're going to have to come up with something to tell them." Anzu glanced downstairs. "Seto and Jo suddenly reappearing…that's going to hit the news."

Yugi nodded, "We can't tell them that Jo was saved by Yuai threatening the Magician of Black Chaos into bringing him into the Shadow Realm."

"I wish Big Brother was better." Mokuba looked longingly over at Seth. "He's great with dealing with these kinds of things. You know he actually got the police to believe that the Duel Dome at Kaiba land was damaged in a freak tidal wave after that whole Anubis thing. And all the damage from the city tournament, he got them to believe a group of radical environmentalist extremists from Save-The-Bottlehanger Beetle had sabotaged the games and caused it all."

"What's a Bottlehanger Beetle?" Anzu frowned, puzzled.

"I don't know. Big Brother probably made it up. He's good at that." Mokuba grinned fondly. "He's the greatest."

Bakura looked up from his hand. "He's a psycho." He nodded at Seth. "He is too, but at least he doesn't get prissy when people start talking about sex." He looked back at his hand as Yami discarded a card, then shrugged, "You'd think Jonouchi would have gotten Kaiba over that by now."

"Honda?" Serenity stood at the door looking unsure. "Why isn't Jo talking?"

"Oh, uhm." Honda looked nervously around. "Well, yeah, about that…"

Seth, who was still trying to figure out the mystery of chopsticks, stood up and walked over. "Post-traumatic stress." He nodded down to where they could hear Jo's dad talking. "Physically, he's fine. If he isn't talking in a couple of days, I'll send him to a therapist."

Serenity looked worried. "Kaiba, are you sure? Isn't …"

Seth gently turned her around and gave her a nudge down the stairs. "Don't worry about that now. Just go be with him. He's missed you."

Serenity nodded and went back downstairs.

"Post-traumatic stress. Pretty good." Mai tossed her cards on the table as Yami called gin. "Kaiba told you to say that, didn't he?"

Seth nodded and rubbed his temple tiredly. "I need to rest. Seto's upset and I can't deal with him and …" he gestured to the chopsticks, the coffee, the chaos that was suddenly erupting between Yami and Bakura about where the gin came into the game of gin, and down to where the Jonouchis were having their reunion.

Yugi, ducking out from between two grumpy yamis, motioned for Seth to follow him out of the kitchen. "You can sleep in Mokuba's room with him and Jo. Ryou, Malik and I are in the room next door, so if you need anything, just knock."

Seth trudged up the stairs behind him.

"Your priest doesn't look all that good." Bakura eyed Seth's slightly slumped shoulders. "You should probably talk to him or some other feel-good thing your hikari gets you to do."

Yami watched Seth a moment, then returned to collecting the cards from where Bakura had thrown them. "He tries too hard." Yami shuffled the cards he held in his hands absently.

**Seth**

"He blew up my house!" Seto was still raging when Seth appeared in the hall between their soul rooms. "My house! What if Mokuba had been home? He could have been killed."

Seth nodded and walked into his room, with Seto tagging at his heels. He bowed tiredly to the gods as he passed, but kept walking past them and up the stairs.

"What kind of explosive happy psycho is he?" Seto panted when they finally got to the small bedroom. "First he blows me up, now he's blown up my house."

Seth collapsed on the bed, wearily watching his light rant.

"Not that I care about the house. Actually, he did me a favor. Gozaburo had it in his will that I couldn't tear the house down. I hated that house. It resembled a cheap funeral parlor…"

Seth just watched him. Apparently the destruction of his home had drastically improved his hikari's health. He still looked frail, and he wasn't so much storming around as pacing unsteadily, but considering just a few days ago all he would do was sleep, he was pleased. Now in possession of a migraine headache, but still pleased.

"Mokuba could have been there." Seto paused to catch his breath. "What if Mokuba hadn't been with us in the Shadow Realm. He could have been killed." Seto sunk down to the edge of the bed, and Seth scooted over to give him room. "I'll destroy him. I'll hunt him down and tear out his lungs. No…that's too good for him. I'll…" He paused again panting slightly.

"Ants, honey, desert sun. Any combination of those always worked well for me." Seth watched as Seto struggled back to his feet. He considered pulling him down for an enforced nap, but, after watching Seto wobble unsteadily for a second just to thump back down to the bed, he decided against it. Better to let him get it out of his system.

"I lack a desert." Seto glared over his shoulder at him. "But I've heard about the ants and honey. How much honey do you think it would take?"

Seth yawned, "Not much. Once the ants have the idea, they take over from there." He tugged lightly and Seto collapsed down next to him.

"I'm not taking a nap." Seto struggled back to sitting position. "I have to find that bastard and…"

"Bitch."

"What are you babbling about?" Seto gave him a disgusted look. "It's a guy. I know. I saw him."

"It's a girl, or it's a girl right now. It's using Yuai's cast off body." Seth tugged again and Seto fell over again.

"It's using… That's impossible. You can't just trade bodies like…like cards." Seto twisted around so he could glare at Seth.

"Either that, or Yuai just got one hell of a yami." Seth watched as Seto's eyes narrowed.

"There're no such things. She probably has a split personality or something." He nodded. "She had a very traumatic childhood. It wouldn't be unreasonable."

"Of course, how could I even say such a thing." Seth's lips twitched as he smothered a smile. "However, I should point out that you could claim the same thing. If I'm not a yami, then you, with your traumatic childhood, are also the happy victim of having a split personality. Isn't it nice. You can go to therapy with Jo."

"I don't need therapy. I'm perfectly fine." Seto huffed, twisting back around to face away from him. "I'm just hallucinating, due to lack of sleep and a lousy diet. I'm only a couple of meals and a good night's rest away from getting rid of you."

There was a knock on the door of the real bedroom. Seth sighed and carefully got to his feet, leaving Seto stretched out on the bed, fuming and angry. It only took him a second to take control of the body and wake up. "Come in."

Mokuba stuck his head in the door. "Seth, uh, is Seto listening?"

"What's wrong Mokuba?" Seth watched the child squirm.

"Well, Jo's dad just…" Mokuba winced and blurted it out. "Someone blew up Kaiba Corp towers. Two of them, here and in San Francisco. They also wiped out the main administrative building at Kaiba Land."

Seth was surprised the people downstairs couldn't hear Seto's enraged roar. His delicate light was up and frothing at the mouth, making the insides of his head echo in increasingly painful waves of pure fury.

Seth carefully nodded to the boy. "Thank you Mokuba."

"I'm going downstairs now." He edged out the door. "You know, just in case…ummm…I'll be sleeping in Yugi's room tonight. Bye."

_Smart little brother._ Seth winced as Seto howled in rage. _Well, if blowing up the mansion made Seto a little better, he should be absolutely fine now."_

* * *

Please take the time to feed the starving muses withthe words of your excellent review! 


	21. Encounters

AN: No I don't know if Egyptians had maps, reed pens, or inkpots. It would make sense for them to have these, -they had far more sophisticated things- but I'm not positive that they did, and am too lazy to look it up. Also, I finally made up my mind on who gets Seth. After reviewing my own story it became rather obvious… I'm so twisted and evil I should get a prize.

* * *

**Psyche**

Chapter Twenty One: Encounters

* * *

OCs

**Ahmose: (Egyptian for: The moon is born)** Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on**: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame**: Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon**: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara**: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori**: **(Japanese for: Ice)** The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr**: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be.He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt.

**Shimo**: **(Japanese for: Frost)** The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai**: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

* * *

**Kaiba**

To himself, in the privacy, such as it was, of his own mind, he admitted things were getting more than a bit odd. He hated long conversations about magic. He despised how Yugi, Ryou, and Malik wandered around with psycho look alikes bent on dueling for world domination. He absolutely loathed their sudden trips off into the land of The-Fates-Rule-My-Entire-Existence. However, he wasn't brain dead. Public denials aside, he'd known for a long time that somewhere, someone, kept supplying him with little magical tidbits. When Duke had planted the token on him months ago, the neutralizing spell had popped into his mind with little effort. He even acknowledged, at least to himself, that all the garbage that Yami liked to drone on about endlessly, about him being the reincarnation of his former high priest, was probably true. There was just too much he couldn't explain, his attachment to the Blue Eyes, the gut deep instinct that unerringly led him to Yami whenever the pharaoh was in danger, the assorted bizarre craziness that broke out whenever a tournament was held, which was why, after Battle City he had sworn off the things. It was another matter to suddenly have his very own doppelganger.

The scariest part was…he liked it.

He stood, or truthfully wobbled unsteadily, looking down at his slumbering yami. His yami. He couldn't remember when his yami appeared. He had just been there. He had been so tired. So tired that it had hurt. And scared. And desperate. Mokuba had needed him. He had been in danger, alone, trying to shoulder HIS responsibilities. Jonouchi had needed him. His lover had been hurt. Even if his body had been fine, in Jo's eyes, he'd seen the fear that had stolen his voice. And there had seemed to be nothing he could do. He couldn't get to Mokuba. He had no idea how to help Jonouchi. He had been trapped, helplessly watching everything he ever cared about crumble about him, and he had been too weak to do anything but be pathetic. Then, out of nowhere, everything had been alright. It had suddenly been fine to just let go and rest. It was alright. It was being handled. There was nothing he had to worry about. Someone else was worrying about it for him. Someone was taking care of it, and best of all he knew it would be done right because **he** was the one doing it. The other him. His other self. The one who had slept deep in his mind for so long.

"Freeloader." Kaiba carefully walked out of the room and edged down the hall, keeping one hand against the wall to steady himself. "About time he started pulling his own weight."

He stumbled to a door and carefully pushed it open. He'd overheard enough conversations between Ryou and Yugi to know that one didn't just barge into various rooms in a yami's soul. He remembered one particularly gruesome tale about multi-headed, eyeless leeches that Ryou had been unlucky enough to encounter. He also remembered Yugi nodding complacently saying, "Oh yeah, those are bad."

Happily there were no leeches behind the door, only a candlelit study. He staggered over to the desk and dropped into what appeared to be a horse hide chair. Night air whispered through the window behind him, gently brushing against his hair and sending a pleasant chill across his shoulders. The candlelight rippled in the breeze making the soft shadows dance soothingly.

Kaiba settled back and sighed. After a second, he looked around to see if he could find anything useful. After all, if some bastard was blowing up his life and using Shadow Magic, he felt it only proper to reciprocate. A couple scrolls lay on the desk, next to a small inkpot and a few reed pens.

The first one was nothing more than a few reminders that Seth had written down. _Good luck on the "Get Seto to meditate" one._ He read the whole thing, more out of fascination that he could read the elegantly scrawled hieroglyphics then any real need to know that Seth was planning on finding onions, or that Yami Yugi had invited him to join some kind of support group. _Do yamis need a support group? Aren't they supposed to be dark? They are yamis. Do hikaris have a support group?_ He got a sudden picture of Yugi, Ryou, and Malik sitting in a dingy room, drinking instant coffee, and taking turns shamefacedly standing up saying, "I'm a hikari." The others would chorus back. "Hello, hikari" and then the standing light would then launch into some tale of woe, probably about five headed leeches, while the others passed a box of tissues around and nodded sympathetically. _I'm not joining._ He set the first scroll aside and picked up the other.

"Song of Orpheus?" Kaiba muttered scanning the poem. His yami had added a few notations along the side, that Kaiba was please to note would make the spell a lot more effective. "Hmmmm."

**Yami**

Yami was standing watching himself hold court. He still looked a little too bright eyed, but he was now clean, his hair didn't stand in odd spikes, and when he spoke he sounded sane enough, a tad hoarse, but sane. The courtiers seemed a bit wary at first, but after awhile, they relaxed and let the flow of court business carry them along.

Yami stood between Seth and his uncle Akenaden watching his dream self trying to sort out a land dispute. The whole thing was far from thrilling, but Seth watched it, and him, intently.

"It's too soon, my son. He still isn't well enough to handle this burden." Akenaden fussed, looking worriedly at where his other self sat with Shimon at his elbow listening to two land owners politely insult each other. "He's been through so much. I would hate for him to sicken again."

"He's fine father." Seth didn't take his eyes off him though.

"What if he collapses? The rumors will spread." The older man shook his head. "It's been hard enough to explain his…his illness. Our enemies will strike if…"

"They're still running and peeing themselves from that little boarder skirmish." Seth glanced over towards the door as Shadi stepped in and bowed towards his pharaoh. His dream self gave his priest a small nod of acknowledgement then returned to studying the map one outraged man was pointing too. Seth nodded to Shadi too, then went back to watching the other him. "After meeting the Blue Eyes, they won't stop running till they find their mammas."

Yami watched as his other self made his decision and waved the petitioners away. He grinned as Shimon set a cup of wine at his elbow and his other self grimaced. "I feel your pain."

"I just worry." The old man sighed. "All our fates hang on him. If he falters…" He trailed off. "Maybe a few more weeks? We could say he needs a vacation. You take the throne for just a bit longer and Shadi, Isis and I could take him down to..."

"No father. He needs to do this now. He needs to know he still can do this." Seth snickered as the other him took a drink of the wine and shuddered.

"My son, I just want to see…" Akenaden bit his lip, then nodded. "I'm worrying like an old nanny."

Yami smiled at his uncle. "I'm glad you are. I forgot." He watched himself motion for the next set of petitioners. His other self's eyes tracked around the room till they came to Seth and Akenaden, and Yami could see him relax. "I forgot I had a family to worry for me."

Seth nodded to his pharaoh and motioned for an attendant, as the next case began. "Is there any possible way to sneak some good wine to our pharaoh. I know Shimon is proud of his home brew, but his majesty's been ill."

"What!" Yami glared over to the robed, veiled counselor. "Home brew!"

"Sorry your highness." The attendant bowed low. "We've been trying all day, but he refuses to allow us near the pharaoh's wine. He says it's by the pharaoh's command."

"I never commanded that!" Yami gasped. "I don't care how mentally ill I've been! I'd never give such a insane order. Do you know what that stuff tastes like!"

Yami woke up wanting to strangle Shimon, or the next best thing…Grandpa. "Home brew. When I get my hands on him…"

**Yamis**

The dilapidated shack only looked more worn than it had when Yami had first seen it. The rusty jeep that had been parked in front of the place was gone, but the weeds had grown into a snarl where it had been and had made a lunge for the door. The roof, which had only looked swaybacked, now looked as if the main beam was about to crack, sending the rotting wood shingles to rain down into the interior.

"So, this is the place." Malik looked around at the wrecked cabin, the tall pines, and the small woodland creatures that stared defiantly back. "Not as great as a warehouse, it's a bit isolated for world domination, but not bad for a kidnap retreat."

"I'm glad you approve." Yami kicked past a tangle of weeds and walked through the ruins of the front door. "I'm sure Jo preferred the warehouse too."

Malik shrugged. "I'm a better class of kidnapper. My victims know from the beginning they're in the hands of a professional." He stepped in after Yami and frowned at the garbage inside the living room. "We have to go through that?"

Yami held out a pair of pink cleaning gloves. "Yep. Get to work. I'll go work in the room Jo was held in. You do this room and we'll both go through the other bedroom together."

Malik held the long, pink, rubber gloves in two fingers, surveyed the mess, and whined. "Why couldn't I stay with the lights?"

Yami smirked, "Because you're the professional."

**0-0**

"So Timothy is really a space alien who was sent to earth to find a cure for a disease that was wiping out his people, but he fell in love with Sasha, who has been hunting for her long lost third cousin Jasmine." Seth watched the TV, entranced, as two oddly dressed, but beautiful people broke into tears and cried.

Bakura nodded. "Any time now Sasha is going to reveal that she's really in love with Randolph, who has been trying to cover up the fact that Jasmine was turned into a vampire by Sasha's father, Roman. This will probably cause Timothy, who's too squeaky clean to exist, to loose his temper and reveal that he's dying from drinking Dr. Pepper sodas, that are poisonous to his people. The only question is, does human birth control work with alien zygotes."

"What about this Jessica, who is having her brother Teddy's child?" Seth watched amazed as the two weeping people suddenly flung themselves at each other and started ripping off their clothes.

Bakura waved to a large stack of video tapes. "It's in there somewhere."

"Have they made up yet?" Ryou, holding a tray of tea and sodas settled down on the floor in front of his yami. Yugi holding a couple bowls of freshly popped popcorn sat down next to him and passed one of the bowls back to the two yamis on the couch.

"It's a sympathy fuck." Bakura took is tumbler of Jolt soda and shook his head disgustedly.

"Oh," Ryou passed a cup of mint tea back to Seth. "That will complicate things. DelGato has at least five illegitimate children already. He's really too fertile for his own good. Just think of the child support payments."

"I don't think he's worrying about that right now." Yugi watched wide eyed as a cascade of ecstatic moans, accompanied by a tender violin tune, came from the TV.

Malik holding a bowl of nachos hurried in and watched wide eyed as the TV started showing a montage of erotic, though frustratingly undetailed, shots. "Man, I wish DelGato would give me a sympathy fuck. I promise not to get pregnant."

_I can't believe you're watching this! Someone's blowing up my company and all you can do is watch a idiotic soap!_ Seto raged in the background. _I can't believe you're related to me! No one in my family would ever…_

Mokuba rushed in juggling a pot of coffee, five cups, and a plate of cookies. "Did Chelsea finally get DelGato? She's been angling for him for months." He set the plate, cups, and coffee down then quickly settled next to Yugi. "It's all part of her plan to destroy Starina for ruining her father's tomato processing plant and causing him to become a pot head."

_"…"_

Seth grinned at the sudden silence.

**Jonouchi**

Serenity grinned at him and tossed him the ball. "Come on big brother, you can do it!"

Their father, panting and wheezing, laughed, "Don't count your old man out yet."

Jo faked to the left then spun and raced down the court while Serenity yelled encouragement from the sidelines. His father was at his heels, trying to steal the basketball away from him, but he shifted position again and leapt towards the hoop. The ball rebounded and his father gleefully took possession and raced back to the other side of the court. Jo spun and ran after him.

"Go dad, go!" Serenity yelled.

Jo paused to glare at her.

"So I'm fickle." Serenity let out a yell of triumph that signaled his father had sunk the ball. "Yay Dad!"

"I told you not to count me out." Mr. Jonouchi threw himself onto the bench next to his youngest.

Jo sat next to him and grinned. His father and sister had shown up at the shop that morning and had dragged him out of Seth's overprotective clutches. The yami had snarled, grumbled, threatened, and finally grudgingly allowed Jonouchi to leave, but only after loading him down with enough spells, wards, and concealed weapons to intimidate Gaia. He'd then skipped out of the shop with his family to enjoy the early summer. Not that everything had been sunshine and frolicking. After grabbing a quick, sugar-filled breakfast at Donut Haven, they'd gone to see his mother. It hadn't been a great meeting. She'd hugged him like he had some kind of contagious disease that could be caught by too much contact. She'd then declared that he was going to come live with her, since she was his only biological parent, then went on to set down the rules he was going to live by.

The central rule being no more seeing Kaiba. She fully blamed Kaiba for the entire situation. If Kaiba hadn't been a sick, perverted, creep, he would have been safe. It was Kaiba's corruption of him that had led to his kidnapping. Because of Kaiba, he'd become a slut, a whore, who flaunted his body to tempt the unwary. He practically radiated come-and-fuck-me vibes that had led him to be kidnapped and molested by some twisted soul who had been too weak to resist his deviant charms. She had bemoaned the fact that her darling son was now some degenerate toy for foul, probably illegal a sexual predators, and claimed that she would help him be a better person. Not a good person, he was now too tainted for that, but with hard work and discipline, he would be able to be accepted back into society.

Jo had stood there listening, torn between an unreal feeling that this couldn't possibly be his mother saying these things, and agreeing that maybe, in some ways, she did have a point. Maybe he was giving off some kind of sluty vibe. After all, no one had grabbed Honda, They'd grabbed him. They'd turned him into their private fuck toy. After all, look at what he'd done. He was the one who decided to screw around on Kaiba. He was the one who bed hopped like a bunny last fall. Even Honda had called him a slut. Maybe he was. Maybe his mother was right. Not that he'd blamed Kaiba. No. Kaiba had nothing to do with him being such a whore. Kaiba had only offered support, love, and loyalty. He was the one who fucked everything up.

He'd been forcefully yanked out of those thoughts by a strong, calloused hand landing on his shoulder. He'd jerked nervously around to find his father standing next to him, glaring at his ex. Serenity stood behind them breathless and in tears, after running to fetch their dad. When they'd arrived, his father had motioned for them to go up without him, saying that their mother would be happier if he wasn't there, so he'd stayed outside, smoking a cigarette, leaning against the car, while they'd gone up to say hello. Now he was standing next to his son. "Go out to the car Katsuya. I need to talk to your mother."

Serenity had latched onto his arm and pulled him out the door, which slammed shut. As they fled down the stairwell to the lobby, they could both hear the faint echoes of the argument that flared up behind them.

A half hour later the elder Jonouchi had walked out of the building and pulled his son into his arms. "You don't listen to her. It's okay. It wasn't your fault."

They had left then and came to the park. And someplace between eating ice cream cones while walking along the rim of the fountain and his dad running into a nearby store to buy a ball, things had become a little okay. Not great but a little okay. It had been sometime during the game, that he'd reluctantly admitted, that maybe, just maybe, his dad had been right.

"Okay troops, time to head out to the nearest restaurant and have lunch." Mr. Jonouchi heaved himself to his feet.

"Yay! Pizza!" Serenity bounced to her feet instantly.

"Nope. Not happening." Their father patted his belly. "I'm trying to lose a bit of weight and one sin a day is my limit."

"Awww." Serenity wrapped her arms around him. "But there'll be less of you to hug."

He rubbed her head. "And it'll be here a lot longer to hug. Now, how about The Garden Grotto. It'll be hard, but I'm sure you'll both find something unhealthy to eat."

**Jame**

"I can't work like this!" The RV that Kado had okayed for their temporary office was driving her insane.

Tanaka, who was hunched over a TV tray while perched uncomfortably on a fold out sofa, nodded sympathetically. Half of his files, printed out from one of Jame's backup flash drives, were scattered across the floor, while the other half teetered precariously from the sofa.

Jame fumed and tapped her fingers against the small laptop computer that sat in front of her on what passed for the dining room table. She wondered if she should laugh, cry, or feel relieved that when she finally had her mental breakdown they could convert the table to a handy bed for her to recover on.

"Perhaps you'd like to go work in New York. There's still a building there that hasn't been blown up yet." Kado, looking worn, stressed, and irritable stomped by on his way to the microscopic bathroom.

In the back bedroom a group of security personnel sat on the floor that was once taken up by a queen sized bed and poured over duty rosters and added safety measures. The accounting department was buzzing in and out, fetching drinks from the refrigerator, then darting back to their picnic table that was set up under the outside awning. Research and Development had taken over another picnic table and was trying to cobble together a working outline of the projects that had been blown to bits.

"Sarcasm. Is that a new security measure?" She growled at Kado's back. then went back to piecing together Kaiba Corp. It would be a lot easier if someone would stop destroying everything. She'd just get things organized and some wacko would blow another gaping hole in her carefully arranged plan. _Well, this time, I'll plan for that too…_ She narrowed her eyes and glared at the computer as if it had personally offended her. _How the hell am I supposed to be fired in a perpetual state of emergency? The sympathy alone is sure to doom me to years of job security._

She snarled as a group of accountants bumped by scattering one of her files across the table. "Get lost!"

"He's here! Oh my God, he's here!" A voice yelled from outside. A babble of excited voices drifted through the partially open door. A group of security personnel wrenched their stiff bodies off the floor and edged out the door, their hands resting over their weapons.

"Who? Elvis?" Jame gathered her file together and started putting it back in order.

Kado edged out of the tiny bathroom, zipping up his pants. "Report!"

The report came in the form of a tall, elegant brunet, with glacial blue eyes. "Kado…Who the hell is blowing up my company!"

* * *

Yes! The return of Captive Passions! What will happen next will Timothy die of Dr. Pepper poisoning? Will Jessica have her baby? Will DelGato be saddled with even more child support? I do love this soap… 


	22. Solutions

AN: The blah, blah, blah indicate what the hieroglyphics are saying. Also, has anyone but me ever noticed that the name Marik is the same as Karim, only backwards and twisted? Last note, I am behind on my behind schedule. I can't believe it…grumble, grumble… I might need to stretch this story even farther then I originally planned, just to get everything in.

* * *

**Psyche**

Chapter Twenty Two: Solutions

* * *

**OCs**

**Ahmose: (Egyptian for: The moon is born)** Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on**: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame**: Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon**: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara**: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori**: **(Japanese for: Ice)** The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr**: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be.He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt.

**Shimo**: **(Japanese for: Frost)** The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai**: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

* * *

**Yami and Marik**

The police had done a through job of collecting any evidence and totting it away. Not to say that there wasn't mountains of pure garbage drifting around the shack, but it seemed that all the really important stuff was long gone.

"Pharaoh, hey, pharaoh!" Marik's voice broke Yami out of his disgusted search of the room Jonouchi had been held in.

"I don't want to see any more of his magazine collection!" Yami yelled back, irritably kicking a empty dog food can across the room.

Marik appeared in the door. "This place has really been picked over. I think we're wasting our time here."

Yami shrugged, "Let's just do the fruit loop's bedroom then leave. We've still got the cliff side and the house Kaiba nearly got blown to bits in."

"How about the business dude?" Marik ambled back into the ruins of the living room.

"Yes, him too. But only him." Yami slogged through the garbage towards the bedroom silently cursing Marik's longer legs, that could easily step over the garbage heaps he had to wade through. "But if we chase after every business associate that Kaiba's driven into an insane rage, we'll be investigating till we die of old age."

The bedroom was, if anything, in even worse shape then the living room. The windows had been shattered and dirt, leaves, and branches mixed into the tangle of papers, clothes, and food containers that heaped in small mountains through the room. The odor of decaying trash, moldy bedding, and old urine seemed to spring at the two yamis's noses with a diabolical laugh. The two wilted.

"I'd say let's break for lunch, but I just lost my appetite." Marik covered his nose and mouth with one pink hand, noticed what was clinging to its palm, the smeared it across the wall next to him with a disgusted look.

Yami swallowed queasily. "Let's just get this over with and get up to the cliff. If all else fails we can throw ourselves off and die clean."

Marik stepped over to a pile and shook his head, "The problem is that we can't die. I'll have to live with this memory for the rest of eternity."

"Maybe we'll get lucky and you will die." Yami settled next to another pile. "I do have incredible luck." He reached into the pile and pulled out a decaying mass of soggy paper. He gave it a disgusted look and was about to toss it, when something caught his attention.

_It's all your fault Kaiba. You took them away from…_

"Marik, I've found something." Yami kept reading as the blond dark knelt at his side reading over his shoulder.

_…me. It's all your fault._

He'd read that before. Hell, it was painted on some of the walls and carved into the window sills. No, what caught his attention was the scribbled, barely legible hieroglyphics that flowed lopsidedly down the page after it.

_I gave you everything and you destroyed it. You destroyed everything. All my work! All that time, and you demolished it. Careless, spineless… You'll pay, Seth. You will pay. It's all your fault. I'll destroy everything, everyone you ever loved. I will make you pay for what you did. _

"Shit, it's after Seth?" Marik stepped back.

Yami stood up, "Who the hell is this? Seth made his share of enemies, but…" He gestured around the wreckage of the cabin. "here? Now?"

"If it's connected to the Eye, could it be that old priest of yours? Akunamatata, or whatever." Marik poked at the pile a bit more hoping for more papers.

"Akeneden. No, he wasn't the happiest of men, but he loved Seth. He'd never do this." Yami reached in a pocket, pulled out a large plastic zip lock bag and dropped the sodden mass of papers into it.

Marik stood up, pulled off his gloves and tossed them away. "Zork?"

Yami snorted disgustedly and headed out the door. "Dealt with."

"Do you think Bakura?" Marik took another glance around the living room as they passed through it, but didn't see anything except trash.

"And put Ryou in danger? Not a chance." Yami shook his head and walked back to the car, dropping the plastic bagged papers into the back seat through the open window. "The thief would rather be eaten by a Man Eater Bug."

"Then another of your priests. Shadi?" Marik looked almost gleeful at the prospect.

"I don't like him, but I don't see it." Yami yanked off his gloves and tossed them aside. "If he was after Seth, he wouldn't use," Yami gestured toward the cabin, "these methods. He does have **some** honor."

"Sister?" The blond yami ducked his head, almost looking afraid of Yami's answer.

"No. She's annoying, but, again, she does have some honor." Yami started hiking up the hill, towards where Jonouchi was pulled into the Shadow Realm by Ledowr, and the kidnapper had committed suicide. Yami wasn't expecting to find anything up there, but it was better to be through, and it would postpone having to sit for hours in a car with Marik on the trip back.

Marik gave an almost inaudible sigh of relief, then caught up to Yami. "How about Karim?" Marik looked around the woods trying to come up with possibilities.

"Did you take a good look at the Celtic Gaurdian? That was Karim." Yami reached the trail head and started up the slope. "He was also a good friend of Seth's. You can also wipe Mahaado off your list. Kisara would barbeque him if he even had a passing thought of harming Seth."

"We've run out of people."

"It has to be someone."

**Kaiba**

"I need to get back to work." Kaiba stormed around Seth's soul room study, or at least pretended he was storming around. If his legs had a tendency to wobble, and his footsteps didn't quite match in tempo or length, he tried hard to ignore it. He was trying to storm, not wobble pathetically. He absolutely refused to acknowledge that his brief, as in five minutes, visit with his surviving employees had tired him out to the point of near collapse. "You can't keep me here!"

Seth looked up from the scroll he was reading, and nodded, "That is true. You can return to your own soul room anytime you wish."

"I want my body back!" Kaiba tried to slam his hand against the desk, but his atrophied muscles lacked the power to make the gesture as meaningful as he hoped. He looked at his hand disgustedly wondering if there was some kind of weightlifting program for the soul.

Seth set the scroll aside and stood up. "Hikari calm down." He stepped around the desk and caught Kaiba in a embrace. "You don't have the strength, yet. I let you go visit your people. Tomorrow you can work on those papers you brought home with you. You are not however, going to take over the body and go back to work till you are strong enough to do so."

"I'm fine!" Kaiba squirmed weakly in his yami's embrace trying to get free. Seth just leaned back against the desk and waited till Kaiba wore himself out and sagged bonelessly against him.

"It is obvious that you are not fine." Seth scooped him up and walked back to the bedroom. He put his exhausted light on the bed and smoothed the blanket over him. "You'll be better soon. Just be patient with yourself." Seth stepped back to the door. "Sleep hikari. If you are better tonight, you can spend some time with Jonouchi."

Kaiba glared at the ceiling till his darkness went away. "I'm not some stupid little kid that you can bribe." He snarled softly. He waited a few minutes, pretending he was waiting for his yami to get busy, then got up. The room tilted alarmingly, but he took a few deep breaths, and forced his tired legs to take him out of the room. He carefully made his way down the hall, and found the first set of stairs.

He didn't know how long it took him, but after what seemed ages of stumbling, falling, laying panting in heaps at the bottoms of various staircases, and periodically tripping over his own clumsy, leaden feet, he finally got to his own soul room. He nearly crawled into his bed and lay there, his breath sobbing in painful gasps through his lips. When his eyes tried to slip close he forced them back open and dragged his body up to sit on the edge of the bed. He pulled a scrap of parchment from his pocket and read through it a couple times.

"Seems simple enough." He took a deep breath and pushed himself to his feet. He stumbled a few steps till he grabbed onto a statue of one of the Blue Eyes, to keep himself from falling. "Okay, now…"

Seth was sitting in his study, checking into a few texts that might help his stubborn light recover quicker. Most of them had the same advice, meditation. He really didn't like that answer. His light was not really the meditative kind. However, the scroll that he presently read seemed to think that judicious amounts of rest with periods of moderate mental activity could also work. The author stressed the need for focus and peace, not necessarily stillness and meditation.

He propped his chin against his hand and thought it over. It might work. His light was certainly intelligent enough to enjoy a mental challenge. That work he brought home might actually be put to some good use. It would allow him to focus on something that wouldn't be too stressful. If it did become too much, Seth had no problems handing part of it off to Mokuba. The child was old enough to handle some of his brother's duties. Now, the only problem was to convince Seto that rest and peace were a necessary part of his recovery. "Stubborn, stubborn, stubborn."

The sudden pain caught him by surprise. His mouth dropped open in a soundless scream as he collapsed to the floor next to the chair, feeling as if someone had suddenly gutted him from the inside out. Just as the first wave of pain subsided allowing him to push himself to his knees and to desperately reach out to see if his light was in danger, the next wave of agony hit, sending darkness crashing down around him.

**Bakura, Ryou, Yugi, Malik, and Mokuba**

Ryou, Yugi, Marik, and Mokuba were all clustered together around the small DVD rack in the corner of the living room trying to figure out what movie they wanted to see. None of the hikaris wanted Seth to miss any of _Captive Passions_, so those tapes had sat neglected in a small pile since the other yami had let his light nag him into visiting what was left of Kaiba Corp.

"How about _The Never Ending Story_?" Ryou looked over at him questioningly.

"The kid with the magic grain of sand?" Bakura shook his head, "Forget it. I'll gut someone before the end."

"Mortal Kombat: Annihilation?" Mokuba waved a box with a stone dragon on it.

"Cheesy graphics." Malik snorted. "I was really looking forward to the transformation and …bleck. All that work to turn into a fat, claymation dinosaur with stubby wings."

"How about Silence of the Lam…"Yugi suddenly had two sets of hands covering his mouth, as Mokuba ripped the DVD case from his hands, pulled out the disk, and cracked it in half.

Ryou called back over his shoulder, "Ooops, that one's broke." He turned to Yugi hissing, "Don't give him ideas. I don't need bottles of Chianti showing up at dinner."

The hikaris and Mokuba went back to the DVDs and Bakura stretched out on the couch idly flipping through channels. The lights quarreled over _The Lord of the Rings_ –nice graphics, nice booty call with Legolas and Aragon getting plenty of air time, but panned for the title.-, the Harry Potter movies –okay booty call, though the cloaks spoiled the fun, but after a few minutes, panned for being liable to give a certain yami ideas about plants, two headed men, and bludgers- and they finally decided on an old romance, _Sleepless in Seattle _–only one booty to contemplate, a bit sappy, but it wouldn't lead to Ryou having nightmares for months. Bakura half paid attention to the squabbling, but drifted off during the discussion about giant chess sets.

He was just sleepily contemplating pulling the old, soft blanket off the back of the couch and settling down for a good nap, when an explosion of Shadow Magic had him up on his feet and running up the stairs with a knife gripped in his hand, before his brain fully processed the event. He vaguely heard Yugi and Ryou urge a startled Mokuba to get back into the kitchen as he leapt the final steps and landed in the hall. _Get down to the shop now hikari! _Bakura yelled over the mind link to his light. He heard Ryou's squeaked reply, as he slid open the door to Yugi's room, checking for intruders.

He could hear soft moaning from Seth's room and slunk down the hall as silently as a cat, listening and sensing for anything out of place. He swore silently to himself as he came to the door. Whoever, or whatever had made the noise was quiet now, but the residue of magic hung heavily around the room. "If you've been playing games priest, I'll fillet you and serve you as dinner. I'll even get the damn bottle of Chianti I wasn't supposed to know about." He whispered as he gently nudged the door open.

The room stank of magic, but no one attacked him, so he pushed the door completely open and looked in. The priest was laying on the bed, by the looks of it unconscious, and on the floor next to him lay a naked, emaciated form. Bakura winced at the slenderness of the arms and legs, but passed over whoever it was to check for more immediate dangers. Nothing presented itself, so he stepped carefully over and looked down at the figures.

"Shit."

**Jonouchi**

He waved goodbye to his father and sister as he walked into the shop and locked the door behind him. Except for his mother, it had been a great day. After the park and lunch, they'd gone to the arcade, where he found out that he really, really shouldn't challenge his baby sister to a game of Maximum Carnage. When she'd completely humiliated him, they'd headed back to his dad's place and had hung around eating bad food, playing video games and listening to the stereo. He bounced up the steps, hoping to talk to Seth for a bit, and maybe play a round or two of Duel Monsters with Yugi. He stopped in the kitchen, and grabbed a soda from the fridge, then ambled in to the living room, wondering what they'd been doing while he'd been out.

The living room was empty, except for a small pile of DVDs scattered in the corner and a small litter of cups, cans of soda, and a few bowls of old, petrified nachos. He could hear a few voices up stairs, so ambled up, wondering what game Yugi had pulled out that would even get Bakura to join the fun. He poked his head into his small friends room, but no one was there. He took a sip from his soda and walked down to his, Seth's and Mokuba's room.

The room was crowded. Bakura was leaning over the bed, with a look of surprise on his face. He could hear Mokuba's voice calling for his big brother, but he couldn't see the spiky haired kid. Yugi and Malik were standing together holding a clutter of towels, bowls, cups of some steaming liquid, and, oddly, a pair of grandpa's old pajamas. Ryou was crowded next his darkness, clutching a washcloth and a large glittery knife.

Jo stepped in and nudged Yugi, trying to get a look over his shoulder at what everyone was looking at on the bed.

Bakura glanced over at him, and jerked his head, indicating that he should shoulder his way through and come next to the bed. "Your lover boy is a class A fuck up."

Jonouchi wiggled past Yugi and Malik and saw what everyone was so weird about. Laying side by side on the narrow twin bed, was Kaiba and…well Kiaba. One was healthy looking with soft, glowing brunet hair, a pale but healthy complexion and a slender, but well filled out form. The other looked like someone out of one of those Nazi concentration camp news clips from history class, with the bones showing with painful clarity beneath taunt pale skin, and hair that lay in a dead, dry thatch of muddy straw.

Mokuba was sitting on the bed torn between the frighteningly skinny version of Kaiba and the healthy one. Neither version was moving, which was driving the child to tears. "Big brother, please. Wake up. You have to wake up."

Jo looked over to Yugi.

Yugi bit his lip and shook his head. "I don't know. We were down stairs and Bakura jumped off the couch, and…" He looked helplessly at the two brunets.

"It's that stupid, fucking song. Yami must have given it to Seth and it backfired." He stepped away. "Everyone out except the squirt and mute boy." He grabbed his knife from Ryou and waved it towards the door. "Out."

The hikaris fled. Bakura grinned then turned to Jonouchi. "Keep an eye on them. I'm calling the pharaoh and the nut. One of them might have stumbled over why we've now got a skeleton of Kaiba."

Jo nodded dumbly staring at the two prone forms. It was hard to tell that they were even breathing. He sat down next to Mokuba and pulled the kid onto his lap.

"Which is he? I can't tell. Seth said Big Brother was sick, but… He can't be. Can he?" Mokuba looked over at Jonouchi with sad, worried eyes.

**Yami and Marik**

"…and that's the way we became a family." Marik sang for the ten thousandth time.

Yami dragged himself into the game shop hoping that somehow, someway, the gods would have mercy on his tortured soul and obliterate Marik from existence. It had been a long, long trip back, and Yami wasn't sure he'd be able to stop himself from killing the blond haired yami once he regained his strength and will to live.

"Yami!" Two voices cried at the same time and two lights plowed into their darknesses.

Yami staggered back, blinking heavily at his hyperactive little one.

"Bakura's been trying to reach you for hours." Yugi was burrowed under one of Yami's arms.

"There's two Kiabas." Malik wrapped himself around his dark's neck, planting happy kisses on his cheek.

"Two…Did Seth do the spell?" Yami dragged himself and his clinging light up the stairs.

Bakura was standing on the top, frowning. "Something went wrong. One looks like shit and they're both out cold."

Yami, still feeling a bit quivery from hours of the Brady Bunch tune, sat down in a chair. "I don't remember that being a possibility." He grunted softly as Yugi planted himself on his lap and snuggled under his chin.

Marik nodded, "I didn't read anything about that either. The spell is supposed to give you a solid illusion of form. The form is dictated by your hikari's form." He looked over at the tall, tanned, blue eyed yami. "Except for those who later modify it."

Bakura smirked. "Jealous?"

Marik shrugged. "Why?" He batted his eyelashes at Bakura. "You want me to change into something a bit more comfortable?"

Malik stepped nimbly away as Bakura launched himself at the other yami. "Anyone want some dinner?"

Yami pushed Yugi lightly off his lap, "Order pizza and maybe a side of soup." He tromped through the door. "I'm too tired to chew."

He walked up the stairs to the bedrooms and pushed open the guest room's door. Mokuba was now sitting at the desk, half heartedly working his way through a stack of paperwork. Jonouchi was sitting on the bed with the skinnier Kaiba's head on his lap, gently running his fingers through the dull locks.

Yami came over and looked at both of them, then shrugged. "Jo, come here."

The blond carefully wiggled out from under the limp form and came to stand next to Yami.

"Close your eyes for a moment Jo." Yami gently turned him to face the two sleeping brunets.

Jonouchi closed his eyes, tipping his head questioningly to the side.

"I want you to touch Kaiba." Yami nudged him forward a step toward the bed.

Jo opened one eye and peeked at his friend.

"Just do it Jo. I'm too tired to play right now." Yami nudged him another step, sounding irritated and slightly dangerous.

Jo closed his eyes, and reached out his hand. _How the hell am I supposed to know which is which?_

"You know him Jo. Now pick him out. Which is Kaiba?" Yami gave him one last nudge and the edge of the bed hit his knees.

_Kaiba? _He felt his hand wavering stupidly above the bed. He tried to figure out how to tell them apart. He pictured Kaiba standing in front of him, with that insufferable, superior look on his face. _Kaiba?_ He felt silly. He listed a few of Kaiba's personality traits. _Adorable. Complete ass. Loyal. Smart._ He started wondering if Yami was playing him, and peeked over to see if the dark was holding a camera taking pictures of this. He wasn't, so Jonouchi closed his eyes again. _Okay, how about something else. _Kaiba sitting at his desk with his chin propped against his twined hands, silently brooding, with his blue eyes dark and unfathomable. Kaiba striding across a dueling arena, with his coat flaring behind him, all pride and determination. Kaiba swimming with Mokuba in the backyard pool, splashing his brother, laughing. Such a rare, beautiful sound. Kaiba's taste, the feel of his body as he slipped clothes off his lover and replaced them with kisses, licks and hungry caresses as Kaiba wound his hands into his hair. Kaiba's weight shifting against him, pushing demandingly against his body, as he gasped and writhed under him. His hand fell on dry, course hair. _Found you._

Yami frowned, but wasn't terribly surprised. "Kaiba sang the song, not Seth." Yami looked disgustedly down at the two on the bed, assessing their condition. "Seth had reason to be worried."

"Will they be alright?" Mokuba stood next to Yami, looking anxious.

"A hikari isn't supposed to sing that, and it definitely isn't supposed to be sang in one's soul room. Seeing a hikari can't get to the Shadow Realm. I'd say Seto just did a pretty good job of trying to kill himself and Seth." Yami yawned and turned away from Jo's and Mokuba's shocked faces. "If they're still alive in the morning, maybe Bakura and I will be able to do something to sort it out."

Jo reached out and caught his arm.

Yami shook his head. "No, nothing can be done tonight. Their condition is too fragile. We'd probably finish the job Kaiba started trying to help."

Jo dropped his hand and looked helplessly at the two on the bed. Yami took the opportunity to get out the door and slump tiredly over to his and Yugi's room. Downstairs he could hear the sounds of mild chaos as Bakura and Marik fought over the toppings on the pizza. He could hear Yugi and Malik turn on the TV and call for Ryou to hurry up, that the show was starting. He closed the door behind him and fell on the bed, his mind sadistically replaying "This is the story of a lovely lady, the mother of three very lovely girls…"

* * *

Review 


	23. Places

Disclaimer: Yugi-oh is the property of Kazuki Takahashi, who is a genius.

This is the third part of the Chrysalis series. You will enjoy this more if you read **_Chrysalis_** and **_Emergence_** first. You will get lost!

**AN:** My mind started wandering off on tangents about Seth and his soon to be lover(s). I was just innocently brushing my teeth and all of a sudden all sorts of alternate pairings, that would be logical, popped into my head. About .5 seconds after I realized that a Seth/Marik pairing would be quite logical (and deeply disturbing). I gagged on my toothpaste and decided I would leave it up to you all. These are the pairings I am willing to consider and my take on the situation:

**A.** Seth, Koori, and Shimo- the one I was planning. There is the master/servant problem to overcome, but the attractions are that Seth and the Blue Eyes have loved each other faithfully for 5000 years, and that the Blue Eyes are the only possible ones that don't and never had to need Seth to take care of them, giving Seth a restful, loving relationship, with no dependency issues lurking around. There is a third reason, but it would give away too much of the plot to tell you. The problems are: Seth would probably be abruptly pounced on by two Blue Eyes, which might be jarring to the story line, and Seth does need to spend a lot of time the mortal realm keep an eye on Seto.

**B.** Seth/Seto with a simultaneous Seto/Jonouchi- which is what I was considering before, but scrapped it when I realized that Seth's truest love would always be the Blue Eyes and this pairing would leave Seto in a dependent relationship with him being dependant on Seth. On the positive side, yamis do tend to fall for their hikaris and Seto, needs intensive looking after by someone besides Jonouchi. Seto and Jonouchi's relationship would be completely untouched. Jonouchi would have plenty of time to recover, and if you readers want to read into the story that when Jonouchi recovers he will join in to make it a threesome, I was intending to leave enough hints for you to play with, or ignore as you choose.

**C.** Seth/Yami and maybe later Seth/Yami/Yugi- Seth and Yami did have a close relationship, though not sexual, in the past. Seth, now that he is, free of his priestly duties and living in a strange world, will need Yami to show him around and teach him how to cope. Yami has already stated in a previous chapter that he missed Seth. Yami is also very aware of Seth and is watching out for him in his own yami-ish way. Once Seth realizes that Yami no longer needs him as a caretaker, he would be in a equal relationship, with someone he has a lot in common with and no deep dependency issues. I originally nixed this because Yami and Seth have shown no desire for a relationship beyond that of friends and cousins.

The choice is yours. Also, if you have any lingering issues from the story that you want addressed (besides who the bad guy is, what does the bad guy want, why the baddie is after Seth, and how do they manage to stop him.) please let me know. I just read a long trilogy where the author left one huge plot loop hanging, so I'm feeling a bit over-conscious of these things right now.

* * *

**Psyche**

Chapter Twenty Three: Places

* * *

**OCs**

**Ahmose: (Egyptian for: The moon is born)** Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on**: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame**: Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon**: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara**: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori**: **(Japanese for: Ice)** The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr**: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be.He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt.

**Shimo**: **(Japanese for: Frost)** The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai**: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

* * *

**The Shadow Realm**

"You honestly think he's the one who brought the pharaoh here from the boarder lands?" Ledowr sat back on his heels, looking at the intricate pattern of spells he and the others had been painting on the floor of the main reception hall. It spiraled around him in a brilliant web of bright colors, like a delicate cloisonné painting. His wife was still kneeling a short distance away muttering under her breath and painting with a small pink tipped brush.

Kallon, who was double checking all their work against the master copy out of an old heavy tome, nodded. "I really don't see any other way to explain it. The spell that the pharaoh and Marik cast should have landed them all together. It wasn't a difficult spell."

Ledowr snorted and cracking his back went back to work.

"I think it's kind of sweet." Yuai glanced over at him, "disturbing in a way, but sweet."

"Dearest, do be careful, you are going to smudge that little cantrip over to the side there," Kallon pointed towards her left foot.

Yuai check it, "It's fine."

"I'm running out of green." Ledowr peered into his paint can. He looked over to the side where four drooping dragons wilted against the wall. "Go get green paint."

E'on dragged himself listlessly to his feet. "Okay." The little black dragon walked out of the hall with slow, dragging footsteps.

The three remaining white haired dragons watched him leave with tragic blue eyes, then went back to their wilting.

Mahaado poked his head in a few moments later, then slumped sadly when he saw his lover. "What kind of paint do you need. E'on's just standing in the hall whimpering."

"Green, and possibly some blue." Kallon checked the pattern in the book.

"I'm running low on silver too." Yuai shook one can speculatively. "Better to get it now and not have them," she nodded toward the depressing trio, "wander off and get lost."

"Send them. Let them get lost." Ledowr painted an intricate swirling design. "They're getting on my nerves."

"After five thousand years of dealing with the court, you still have a few nerves left?" Yuai looked over at her husband with a look of completely false awe.

"Wench."

"Bastard."

"Dearest, your foot…"

**The Game Shop**

Bakura poked the healthier of the two Kaibas.

"Stop that." Mokuba, who was sitting next to them, uncomfortably perched on the edge of the bed glowered at the thief.

"He's not complaining." Bakura poked him again.

Yami and Marik were sitting on the floor with a stack of books that Isis and Shadi had arrived with before breakfast. The two were quickly scanning each book, looking for more information about the Song of Orpheus spell. Downstairs, the sounds of video mayhem growled through the lower apartment as all three lights introduced a shocked, scandalized Shadi to the wonders of Wizard Wars: The Bloodbath on the Playstation. From the occasional enticing whiff of spices drifting through the apartment, the assembled could tell that Grandpa and Isis were busy puttering in the kitchen.

"I've checked the book I found the original spell in, but there's nothing about what to do if it goes wrong." Marik tossed the book into the pile.

Yami nodded absently while turning a page. "I've found a few mentions of the spell, but nothing definite."

Jonouchi, sitting on the bed with the more slender Kaiba's head on his lap, pointed to the stack of books.

Yami nodded, "Yes, we'll check them all. How are they doing?"

Jo ran his fingers through the dry, dull hair of the emaciated form he was holding, with a worried look on his face. It had been a long anxious night. He and Mokuba had spent it carefully watching over the pair, fretting if they so much as twitched in their sleep, not sure if it was a sign they were waking or a terrible omen of impeding death. Yugi, Malik, and Ryou had came in at various times offering to watch over the Kaibas to let the other two rest -which had been adamantly declined- and to offer tea, snacks, pillows, blankets, and comic books. Now both he and Mokuba were bleary eyed and edgy.

"This is just fucking great." Bakura tromped over to the book stack and thumped down with a irritated huff. "As if we don't have enough problems already." He grabbed a book and roughly flipped it open.

"Can't you just…I don't know…" Mokuba looked around desperately. "Put them back together?"

Marik shook his head. "Nope. If we tried they might end up with two heads, or three arms, or four legs."

Yami frowned thoughtfully, "There are a few spells to rejoin a soul. They're complicated and Seth would probably cease to exist as a separate entity, if they even survived the rejoining." He looked at the two forms on the bed. "If their condition worsens, we'll give one of those a try."

Bakura slammed the book shut. "All these fucking books say is that Orpheus's beloved looked back and broke the spell. Anyone want to tell me how you can look back with that spell? All you do is sing it and poof you're here."

"I've come across that reference too." Yami picked up another book. "Only this book says that he looked back."

"Lot's wife is the one that looked back. It's not in Orpheus." Marik flipped the page and continued skimming without looking up.

"No look." Bakura pointed a paragraph. "…and she looked back toward the underworld and the song no longer held her. Her shade slipped down… See, she looked back, not the dork."

"That's interesting." Yami flipped through a few books he'd already gone through. "If I remember there was one in here that said she stepped back just before the spell was broken."

"Looked back, stepped back, what's the point?" Mokuba snapped. "Help Big Brother!"

The three yamis looked up from their books, at the angry child. Jo quickly stood up too and pulled him out of the room.

"NO. I'm not going!" Mokuba flailed, grabbing things as he was hauled out. "I want to stay with Big Brother."

A quick stampede of feet came up the stairs and Yugi, Ryou, Shadi, and Malik stood in the hall with them. Jo shoved Mokuba into Shadi's arms and pointed to the door shaking his head.

"No. I want to stay." Mokuba squirmed. "You can't make me…"

"I understand." Shadi nodded. He gently forced Mokuba down the hall towards the stairs. "It is time for a break. Maybe after lunch, if you are calmer you can return."

Jonouchi listened to Mokuba's shrieks of protest, but ignoring them, stepped back into the room, where the three yamis were once again looking at their various books. He gestured toward the door and shrugged.

Yami glanced up, "Yes, he's very tired. Just keep him out of the way, though, we need to work."

Jo nodded and sat back down, this time scooping Seth's head into his lap.

"Stepped back, looked back, this one says she called back." Marik closed the book, do you think if one of us stood in the Shadows and called Seth back the spell would be broken."

"Seth didn't cast it." Bakura tossed his book aside and leaned back against the wall with a feline stretch.

Yami shook his head. "I think it might be a bit more complicated. Think of the words, I walk toward life, I walk from death, back to bone, back to blood, back to flesh. We might have to redo the song and pull them both back into the Shadow Realm, then sort it all out from there."

"Great, we can probably squeeze that in sometime next week, after we hunt down the psycho that's blowing up buildings and sending people to the Shadow Realm." Bakura stood up and stalked out of the room.

Marik stood up to, "He has a point. We don't have time for this. We should be out there looking for Little Miss Pyro right now, before she decides to banish someone else, or better, blows up the shop with our hikaris in it."

Yami closed the book and nodded. "Yes, I know. We'll get back to that after lunch. You and Bakura go check out the house were Kaiba got sent to the Shadow Realm. I'm going to explore the blast sites and see if I can find anything useful."

Marik shrugged and walked out the door, leaving Yami to face a bewildered Jo.

"Alright, this shouldn't take long. Just get out of the way and hope for the best." Yami suddenly disappeared.

**Shadows**

It was like floating at night, on an incoming wave that never hit the beach. He was lifted, tossed, buried, shoved, pounded, crushed, and yanked in cold, suffocating darkness. He had managed, he still wasn't sure how, to grab hold of his yami, and cling to him through all the tossing and confusion. He desperately wanted to call to his other, but Seth was frighteningly limp in his grasp, and no amount of hurriedly gasped questions or demands and resulted in even a tiny twitch of awareness.

_Yami answer me!_ Seto screamed angrily over their link. _Damn it, Seth, wake up!_

The wave smashed them both down again, sending them spinning through choking cold. Seto thrashed, kicking and reaching till they broke the surface of the tide again.

_Seth! Where are we?_ This time the wave lifted them high. Seto could feel the dizzying swoop as they were both tossed carelessly in the air, then the harsh splash back into the dark. The wave promptly buried them under a fall of blackness, forcing them to tumble like leaves in a gale. _Seth!_

He didn't get an answer, not even the, till now, annoyance of feeling Seth in his mind. _My fault. That damn spell. _He managed to struggle back to the surface and take a few deep breaths, hoping desperately that Seth was still breathing too. He couldn't tell. For all the response he was getting, his yami could be dead._ Isn't this perfect. I get someone I know I can absolutely trust and what is the first thing I do? I kill them with stupidity._ The tide dropped them suddenly into a frightening stillness. Seto grabbed a few more deep breaths, recognizing that they were in the trough between waves, and braced himself. He felt the dark push them up to a peak, then abruptly curl around and crush them in its fist. When it let them go he kicked them back to the surface. _I just fuck everything up. Seth should have just locked me in that room and taken over. He'd have done a better job then I ever could have._

The tide shifted, whirling around them, like a predator circling its prey. Seto panted for breath, clinging tighter to his yami. He could feel the waves rising, and tensed for the blow, but instead something caught him, pulling him backwards, yanking Seth out of his arms. "Seth! Seth! YAMI!"

He was thrown down, landing with a solid thump onto a hard surface. He struggled, his fingers digging into dirt and grass, the scent of lavender whispering around him. _SETH! Where are you! Seth…_ He managed to roll over, to stare up at a black sky framed by silvery leaves. Footsteps rustled, approaching him, and a spiky haired head blocked his vision.

"Got you." Yami smiled.

Kaiba blinked then looked around. Next to him lay the still, bedraggled form of his other. "Seth?" He tried to reach out, to touch, but he was, after all his struggles, too weak to manage even that small gesture.

Yami shrugged. "He's out."

"Where?" Kaiba turned his head and saw a softly glowing river flowing peacefully along a short distance away.

"The Shadow Realm." Yami shifted to kneel next to Seth. He carefully lifted the unresponsive form and peeled the wet tunic off him. He bundled it up and put it under Seth's head. "This is my spot."

Kaiba traced the intricate web of branches back to the slender trunk of a tree. "Spot?"

Yami moved over to him and helped him sit up enough to pull his jacket off. He wrapped it up and shoved it under his head, like he had with Seth. "We tend to have our own spots. This is mine. The thief likes to play with slugs. Marik prefers the dunes."

Yami glanced over and found Seto asleep. "Well, it's an improvement." He walked over to the tree and whispered a few words. The tree shivered a second, then rustled, its branches extending downward to brush against those that were beneath it. Yami caressed a few curious withies and wove out of the sudden fall of silver, brushing a few of the tree's glowing flowers aside as they nibbled lightly on his hair. "I'll be back soon. Keep them safe till I return."

The leaves murmured a wordless sigh, to which Yami nodded. "Yes, I know you will. I'll leave it to you."

**Game Shop**

Yugi set the platter of lamb kabobs on the table and reached for the bowl of vegitable, saffron rice. Bakura was already grabbing a few kabobs before he even turned back around. Ryou, sitting next to his dark, cheerfully trading recipes with Isis, ignored the gnawing and gnashing coming from his yami's direction with the ease of long practice. Mokuba sat poking a sliver of ice around his plate irritably, casting nasty looks at Shadi, who was engrossed in figuring out a small espresso maker. Malik and Grandpa were finishing filling glasses with ice and soft drinks, as Yami and Jonouchi ambled into the kitchen.

"Who's with Big Brother?" Mokuba bounced out of his seat and shoved his way to the door. "He can't be alone."

"Kaiba and Seth are sleeping." Yami snagged the small kid and hauled him back to his seat. "You can watch over them after lunch."

"You tried it." Bakura grunted, stuffing his mouth with more lamb.

"It wasn't hard." Yami settled into a seat and smiled as Yugi sat next to him. "Just a small rearrangement of the words."

"They're okay?" Mokuba relaxed, the angry scowl disappearing from his face.

Yami helped himself to some rice and a kabob. "Kaiba is. Seth is still a bit uncertain." He paused as Grandpa handed him a glass of JellyJuice and took a sip. "From what I can see, Seth gave Seto all his strength. It saved Seto, but him…" he trailed off with a shrug.

"Yay." Bakura scooped a large helping of rice into his mouth. "We need the priest, so we get the rich boy."

"We should be thankful we have either." Isis was looking everywhere but at Bakura. "We could easily have lost both."

"Aaack." A stream of boiling hot coffee spewed wildly out of the espresso maker, causing Malik and Shadi jump. Marik, coming up from the shop holding a stack of mail, snickered and fell into a seat next to Isis.

Malik slunk over to sit next to his yami, "Can we go out for coffee? I really need a caramel macchiato."

"I've almost got this…" Shadi sat down absently accepting a plate of food from Isis. "I think we just need to adjust the little spout thing."

Yugi peered over at the directions he was holding. "I didn't think those needed to be adjusted."

A loud pounding from the shop below startled everyone. The yamis were instantly on their feet, sliding wraithlike down the stairs of the shop. Shadi and Isis stood at the door.

"Oh great. What's the fruitcake doing here?" They could hear Bakura grumble.

"Pegasus?" Yami's voice called softly, as the sound of the door to the shop jingled up the stairs.

"It's after me. It's after me." Pegasus's normally calm, if eerily jovial, voice sounded panicked. "It came to my island. My castle is in ruins."

"The Mad Bomber strikes again." Marik snickered.

"Can this day get any more perfect?"

**Duelist Kingdom**

"Duke, pet, where are you?" The dark Yuai slunk through the wreckage of what was once Pegasus's castle, idly running her fingers along the shattered stone.

Duke was sitting looking blankly across the now polluted pond that had once stretched around the castle like a moat. He turned and looked dully at the dirty figure.

"Pet, where would Pegasus go? Hmmm?" She traced one soot blackened finger down the side of his face.

"Don't know."

She smiled, and slapped him hard enough to knock him to the ground. "Think pet. Where would he go?"

Duke blinked slowly at her for a few seconds, a slender trail of blood slipping down his chin unnoticed. "Domino? There's an office there."

She smiled, "Good boy." She stepped closer and kicked him in the groin, her smile widening as he shrieked in agony and curled into a ball. "I guess you get to go home and say hello to your little friends."

* * *

**Please remember to review, even if you only give me the letter of your relationship choice.**


	24. Priorities

**AN:** Yes, I'm alive and incredibly late. Some…person…introduced me to Final Fantasy VII and my brain hasn't been the same since. Instead of healthily writing fan fics, I've been obsessing about how to get Yuffie up the tower, how cute Vincent is, and why it's so damn simple to level up in that game. Honestly, it isn't a challenge, it's almost an annoyance to level up. As you're traveling around the map, getting lost and trying to figure out how to get from Cosmo Canyon to the Gold Saucer, you level up amazingly fast. Then if you loose yourself in Gongaga and keep whacking at the monsters around the reactor to get money (to play games at the Gold Saucer), you also level up fast, then of course you have to get turned into a frog a couple times, just to see Cloud-frog, Vincent-frog, and Cid-frog, so more levels….

**And the winner is…..**Seth, Seto, Jonouchi. If your wondering I was took votes at Media Miner and Fan Fiction. Net. And the that was the favorite :) For those of you who wondered, I won't let the dragons be lonely for long.

* * *

Psyche

Chapter 24: Priorities

* * *

**Yamis**

"This is getting us nowhere fast." Bakura grumped as he kicked a Coke can across the sidewalk into the path of a teenage couple who paid more attention to each other's lips then where they were walking. The girl tripped over the can, tripping into her date and sending him crashing into a shiny, chrome plated Harley, whose burly owner, lounging nearby, uttered a girly squawk of protest.

Marik yawned as the burly Harley owner stomped past him. "Anyone got any better ideas?"

Yami shrugged, "No, not really. We've looked at what was left of the house where Kaiba nearly got blown up. We've looked at the rubble that was Kaiba Corp, we went to the wacko's house, and even had a thrilling morning at the junk pile that was the Kaiba mansion. I'm out of ideas."

"Tracking spells?" Marik tipped his head.

"Tried that," Bakura turned to watch the Harley owner pummel the boyfriend into the ground as the girlfriend shrieked and cussed. He memorized her face. He admired a woman with a good vocabulary.

"How about a new twist on the tracking spell," Marik narrowed his eyes looking thoughtful. "Before we only tried tracking the Eye and Jo, what if we tried something the mystery bomber might not have thought of covering."

Yami looked over at him questioningly. "What do you have in mind?"

"How about tracking the spell that Kallon cast on Yuai to transfer her soul back to the Shadow Realm?" Marik's lips tipped into a small smirk. "I bet the mystery bomber hasn't figured out who Yuai is yet, much less what was done, or compensated for the new body."

Bakura turned back to the conversation, loosing interest in the pummeling, "We could work with that."

Yami nodded. "It might work. If nothing else, we won't have to go home to find out what Yugi is going to do with a hundred dollars worth of SweetTarts and the Indiana Jones collection."

The other two nodded. Though none of them would ever admit it, even under torture, that was the real reason they were now wandering the streets of Domino City. They knew that that much candy, their lights, and a series of movies dealing with an adrenaline fairy of an archeologist wasn't a good mix. When Malik had romped into the living room with an old whip, and Yugi scampered down the stairs in one of his grandfather's old leather jackets, with Ryou on his heels peeking out from under a battered fedora, they'd suddenly decided to go hunt for the mystery bomber. All day, and maybe tonight, and, if possible, well into tomorrow. Shadi and Isis, being the good servants that they are, were left to deal with the carnage and protect the hikaris.

"We still need a focus." Yami mused, absently pouncing on a likely pebble. He'd discovered that good stones for Shadow Curses were rare in Domino. They'd been plenty in Egypt, which he mused, had been an entertaining way for him, Seth, and Mahaado to kill a dull afternoon. It even helped enliven his father's otherwise predictable life, when they'd put their pebbles to use on his cavalry.

"That statue might work, if we could find it." Bakura almost boredly sidled by a passing police officer, his nimble finger's relieving the man of a few possessions.

"Maybe it's in the bushes around where the spell was cast." Marik nodded in the direction of the park.

"Yes, the park might be an excellent place to start." Yami pocketed his pebble with a small nostalgic smile.

Bakura, thumbing through the officer's possessions, nodded. "Agreed."

**Game Shop**

Jo uneasily sat on the edge of the bed watching Kaiba sleep. At least Yami's…whatever he'd done… had returned the heartbreakingly slender Kaiba to his soul room. Now only one healthy looking Kaiba lay sleeping peacefully next to him. Jo slipped his fingers through Kaiba's hair, brushing a few stray, silky strands away from his eyes.

"Is he awake yet?" Yugi poked his head through the door.

Jo shook his head, giving his friend a wane smile.

"You want me to bring you some lunch? Grandpa and Isis are making something that looks almost edible."

Jo shook his head again, turning his attention back to Kaiba.

"Okay, come down if you're hungry." Yugi disappeared.

Jo stroked Kaiba's hair watching him sleep. No matter how he tried, he couldn't get the image of that terrifyingly frail Kaiba out of his head. _What did you do to yourself?_ Jo looked quickly away, wincing slightly as he remembered kicking Kaiba when they were in the Shadow Realm. _Seth was right. I really didn't help, did I?_ Not that Kaiba would ever even think of blaming him. And that was the problem. No matter what happened, Kaiba would twist things around till the blame rested squarely on him. _Not this time, love. That was me, not you and soon as you get your self better, we're going to have a long talk…uuuummmm… meeting about that. _

"Is Big Brother awake yet?" Mokuba, sporting a chocolate milk mustache and sugar bright eyes, darted into the room.

Jo shook his head no with a slight feeling of deja-vu.

Mokuba nodded, looking slightly relieved and guilty. "You'll get me as soon as he wakes up right?"

Warily Jo nodded, eyeing the boy.

"Okay, just checking." Mokuba bounced out the door.

_Somehow I have a feeling your better off sleeping through whatever that's about._ Jo smiled, smoothing Kaiba's hair. Without its normal brushing, and gelling, it was starting to stick up in little, stray cow licks. Somehow, instead of finding them cute, like he normally did, he was slightly offended on Kaiba's behalf that they'd choose now to poke up.

A moment later the sounds of half muffled cheering, followed by a whoop of delight drifted up the stairs and into the room. _What do you think, video games and candy-fest?_

Kaiba, not surprisingly, didn't answer, but Jo could hear his voice in his memory. "_There are just some things I don't need to think about. What Mokuba actually does in the video room with a tub of gummy worms and Kingdom Hearts is one of those things."_

"_Ah, come on Kaiba, aren't you worried. He might be laying in there in a sugar coma."_ In his memory, he had laughed.

"_He's making too much noise. If things get quiet, then I'll worry."_ In his mind he could remember Kaiba's small wry smile.

Jo turned his head away, blinking quickly. _Seto, wherever you are, come back to me. I miss you, love._

**The Park**

Yami emerged from the underbrush, irritably swatting a leaf out of his hair. His only consolation was that Bakura looked even sillier with the nest of small twigs jutting out of his wild silver mane like exclamation points. He wiped his arm across his forehead, silently cursing the sun and the humidity that lingered in the park.

Marik, huddled on a bench in a paranoid, squirrel hating bundle, was muttering to himself. "After we deal with the mad bomber, you're next rodents. Squeak, squeak, squeak, yourself. Let's see how you like a couple pounds of dynamite shoved up where the sun don't shine."

Bakura collapsed onto the bench. "Anyone find it?"

"No." Yami held up a pack of firecrackers. "Found these though."

Marik snatched them from him, grinning. "Ahhh, revenge."

"Anyone got any other great ideas?" Yami took Marik's place on the bench as the blond yami scampered off towards the underbrush with the firecrackers in one hand and a lighter in the other.

"Got one." Bakura tossed Yami a small white object.

Yami rolled it over in his hand. "Dice. You mean go see Duke."

"He was mind controlled for awhile. He might have a clue…" Bakura leaned back on the bench, stretching his legs out as a series of small explosions came from the bushes.

"Hmmm. Good idea." Yami settled back, waiting as a small cloud of smoke began to rise from a nearby tree. "He might be at his game shop."

Bakura nodded. A series of high pitched, squirelly squeals came from the smoke and a moment later, Marik appeared with a look of satisfaction on his now dirt smudged face. The older yamis watched patiently as the blond turned and mooned his now defeated enemy.

"I don't suppose we could drop him off at the shop?" Bakura yawned.

"Remember, Indiana Jones and sugar." He casually glanced over to Bakura. "Need I say more."

Bakura got to his feet, stretching. "No. Let's get moving." He grabbed the blond yami and tugged him along as he sauntered down a path leading out of the park. "Come on, precious, we've got other things to blow up."

**Shadow Realm**

"I don't see what the problem is, it should be a simple enough spell." Ledowr scanned frantically through another book then tossed it into the small mountain that presently resided in the center of his laboratory. No one had the heart to tell him that they'd already covered this territory when they were trying to get Seto and Jonouchi back into the mortal realm. "We can just banish them all to the mortal realm and have done! No more dragons!" He grabbed another book and started frantically going through it.

Yuai watched her beloved worriedly, then shifted closer to where Kallon was watching the younger mage frenziedly grab another book. Covering her mouth with her fingers she whispered, "I think he's finally cracked."

Kallon nodded. "I fear the vacation will not come soon enough."

**Duke's Game Shop**

"Bingo." Marik, now recovered from his moment of squirrel hating, peered at the darkened shop.

The feeling of Shadow Magic hung heavy in the air around them, tainting it with a disturbing, electrical feeling. They were standing four blocks away from Duke's shop, standing outside a coffee shop. People rushed past them holding cups of coffee and munching sticky looking pastries. The pedestrians looked nervous, glancing around, frowning, hurrying on their way, uneasy in the fouled atmosphere. Yami grimaced in disgust at the feeling.

Bakura, standing to one side just inside the shadows of an alley, looked like he'd been handed a plate of roast camel. "As my light would say, lovely, just fucking lovely."

"Interesting shield spell," Marik peered at the air around the shop. "It looks like a variation of the protection spell around the Tablet of the Pharaoh's Memories."

"There's a protection spell around that?" Yami looked a bit surprised. "I never noticed it."

Marik shrugged, "You're the pharaoh, you aren't affected by it." He nodded toward the nearby lurking thief. "He's probably noticed."

Bakura snorted. "I also broke it. You guys need better spells."

Marik shrugged. "Tell Shadi. I'm on the other team. Remember?"

Yami leaned back against the wall, listening to the other's bicker, and enjoying a rare moment of relative calm before heading off into the shop. _Aibou? Are you well?_

_Yami!... Don't scare me like that! Aaaah… just how many snakes are there in Egypt?_ Yugi's voice sounded nervous and excited.

Yami smiled, happy to hear his light's voice. _Oh, the snake pit scene… still watching movies? _

_Yeah. About the snakes…_

_Not that many, love. And definitely not all in the same place. Stupid scene… why would a thousand snakes congregate in an underground pit? _Yami gave him a mental hug. _I have to go. If something happens, let me know._

Yugi gave the impression of kissing him back. _Everything's fine so far. Kaiba's still sleeping and Jonouchi is watching him. Shadi went back to the museum to get a rock or something that he says will boost the shields around the shop, and Grandpa and Isis are making gyro sandwiches in the kitchen._

With one last hug, Yami pulled himself back to the present.

"…and only a priest would be that stupid," Bakura grumped, "or the descendent of one."

"At least I don't wander around in pink ear muffs." Marik glared back.

_How quickly things deteriorate. _Yami gave a mental huff and pulled himself away from the wall.

_What?_ Yugi sounded confused.

_Nothing, my light. Go back to your movie._ Yami stepped between Marik and Bakura. "Discuss your lack of brain power later, let's get back to dealing with the problem at hand. He nodded toward the shop.

"It's got to be a priest." Bakura eyed the shop for a second, then scanned the area. "It's a priest spell, so it has to be a priest that cast it."

Marik gave a small shrug, letting the argument go. "Possibly. It' isn't a well known spell, but if it's someone from the past, they've had a lot of time to learn it."

"So back to square one." Yami turned toward the shop. "Let's go introduce ourselves, maybe then we'll get some answers."

Bakura faded out of sight. His voice whispering back. "Meet you there."

Marik and Yami strolled casually toward the shop. Marik watching as the people thinned out as they got closer and closer to their goal. Even the cars seemed a bit too sparse. Duke's shop was in the middle of a usually busy shopping district, but the shops on either side looked dilapidated and abandoned. The few cars that did pass by, sped up, zooming through the area as quickly as the law didn't allow.

The door of the shop was dusty, with a few sun faded posters stuck to it and the surrounding windows. The sidewalk was littered with old paper and dirt that had piled up around the edges of the building.

"You think they know we're here?" Marik murmured to Yami as they paused outside, pretending to read an old flyer for a dice tournament.

"Maybe…probably." Yami tipped his head back, looking at the setting sun as it sunk over the hills that surrounded Domino on three sides. "But I'd be surprised if they knew where Bakura was. He's been shielding himself. Now let's go. We're the distraction."

"Distraction? I'm a distraction? When was that decided?" Marik looked around as if there were voting booths he hadn't noticed lurking around the corner.

"Back there." Yami noted that no one seemed to be lurking around or above the shop. _No look outs? Hmm… either they are careless, or very confident…or the thief is getting faster with assassination…hmmmmm._

Marik shifted uneasily, "Do I even get the yami decoder ring and learn the secret yami handshake?"

Yami couldn't sense any mystical alarms either. _Odd. Just the shield spell. _"Maybe later, if you save all your box tops. Ready?"

The clerk looked bored, and slightly high, as he leaned against the counter flipping idly through a tattered gaming magazine. "If you need anything, let me know." He didn't look up as he popped a potato chip into his mouth and flipped a page.

Yami glanced around the shop. The shelves were half stocked and dusty. Candy wrappers littered the stained carpet. _Duke… you're so proud of your shop…_ "Is Duke around?"

The clerk glanced up and nodded. "Upstairs, I think. You friends of his?"

Yami smiled, "Yes, we've been out of town and wanted him to come over tonight. Is he busy?"

"Nah. Just hanging out with his girl." The clerk went back to his magazine.

Marik, who'd been looking at a rack of outdated magazines, strolled back to Yami and they headed up the stairs. "Did you notice, once inside, there's no shield spells?" He nodded toward the right. "I can spot them both."

Yami paused, looking toward were Marik indicated. "Good. If I remember, that's storage."

They slipped past Duke's apartment, wrinkling their noses at the scent of rotting garbage that wafted through the half open door. They went up another set of stairs and stopped at the door to the storage. The door was closed, but when Marik tried the handle, the door opened easily.

"…that over there." A voice that almost sounded like the small, mortal Yuai, but harsher, snapped. "It goes over there."

There was the sound of scuffling and something heavy being shifted. Yami and Marik pushed the door all the way open, and saw Duke moving boxes out of the center of the room.

A small figure stood off to one side, shifting irritably. "Oh, look. Entertainment."

Duke put the boxes down slowly, then turned and looked over at his friends. His normally bright eyes were dull, dead looking. His hair lay in greasy mats down his back and hung limply around his face. Even his clothes were dirty, torn and stained.

"Mind controlled, and a shitty job of it too." Marik snorted.

"Not mind controlled. His soul's gone." Yami narrowed his eyes, inspecting the small figure that stepped out of the shadows.

Yugi's small friend, or rather her body with someone else's soul in it, had changed dramatically. Even seeing her in the foyer where Ryou had be thrown into the Shadow Realm hadn't prepared him for the change. Dirt…no foulness seemed ingrained into her skin. From the top of her grimy head to the acne riddled skin, to the shabby clothes, she reeked of corruption.

"Bathing, give it a try." Marik covered his nose.

Yami stepped further into the room. "Who are you?"

The figure, he refused to call it Yuai, smiled, a twisted mockery of amusement. "What…I'm hurt. You don't remember me?"

Marik, keeping a careful eye on Duke, stepped to Yami's side. The pharaoh could handle the Yuai-wanna be, but the physical attack, if it came, would be from the dice boy.

"Tell me. How is Kaiba? Hmmm? Enjoying his holiday?" The figure laughed.

Yami shrugged. "Wouldn't you rather know about how Seth is?"

"SETH!" The figure tensed angrily. "That traitor! That low life son of an ass. Him and the bitch that dared to bear him are roasting in hell."

Yami smiled, "Last I check he was fine. Taking a nap under a tree by a river. No hell roasting."

"He's dead. You're lying." The figure snarled, tearing at its own hair in anger. "I watched him die."

"I'm dead too, but I got over it." Yami, glanced around at the boxes as he slid forward, preparing himself as he felt the inrush of power around him.

"Damn you!" The figure gestured and Duke rushed forward, throwing himself at Yami.

Marik stepped into his path, blocking him, with a laugh, "What…can't fight for yourself?"

At the same time, Yami raised his hand. "Mind Crush!"

"Fuck you, pharaoh." The figure made a cutting motion with one hand, blocking the spell. "I expected you to…"

A knife appeared almost magically in her shoulder, as Bakura slipped wraith like from behind a pile of boxes. The white haired yami grinning like an insane cat. "He expected it too loser."

"Low life scum." She pulled the knife out, throwing it to the side, then narrowed her eyes. "Die!"

The spell threw Bakura back into the boxes, as Yami quickly put his hands out in a shielding gesture. Purplish light exploded through the room as the spells clashed. Behind them, running footsteps pounded up the stairs.

"Danm, he's a bitch." Marik punched Duke in the stomach sending him down in a heap, but the brunet just clumsily pulled himself back to his feet.

"He can't feel pain, with his soul gone. You'll have to knock him out." Yami panted, circling around to put himself between the still stunned thief and the enemy.

Bakura grunted, wobbling to his feet. "Caught me there."

Yami narrowed his eyes, "Dark magic attack!" A bolt of darkness ran from Yami across the room to the figure.

It hurriedly threw up a shield, as the counter clerk from down stairs rushed into the room and leapt at Yami. Yami was knocked back into the boxes that Bakura had just pulled himself out of. Bakura stepped to the side, pulling out another knife, as Marik threw Duke into the enemy.

"You're mine." Bakura darted forward as the figure thrashed free of Duke and tried to stand. This time the thief sunk the knife into her chest. At the same time, he buried his fingers into her eye socket pulling the Eye out.

The figure instantly went limp. Duke shrieked and thrashed, then fell to the floor moaning. The counter clerk, who had been pounding Yami's head against the floor fell suddenly and quietly over unconscious.

Bakura smiled, stepping back, "Well, that wasn't…"

Duke abruptly yanked himself off the floor, like a puppet that's strings had just been jerked, and lunged forward, slamming into Bakura. A second later he was up and running out the door, leaving the thief laying on the ground with the first knife he had thrown now buried in his side.

"Bakura!" Yami pulled himself unsteadily to his feet and wobbled over to the thief.

"D..d..damn." The thief cautiously touched the knife, distantly hearing his frightened hikari's voice calling worriedly to him.

**Seto and Seth**

Seto woke up thinking he was in the middle of a rain storm. Glittering silver fell around him in soft torrents, but oddly, he wasn't getting wet. He rubbed his eyes and blinked the sleep out of them. _Oh, still in the Shadow Realm._ He sat up, brushing a few of the draping willowy branches out of his way. Suddenly he looked around. _Seth! Seth! Where are you?_ He twisted around searching the area. Of to one side a still form lay half concealed in the silvery fall of leaves and branches. _Seth!_ He crawled shakily over to his other and nearly collapsed at Seth's side, panting slightly. _Yami! Seth, answer me!_

Seth lay pale and still, with the makeshift pillow yami had made of his tunic still under his head. Seto couldn't even tell is his other was breathing. He raised one shaking hand to touch Seth's throat, hopping to feel a pulse. The skin beneath his fingers was cold to the touch, and his trembling fingers couldn't feel a pulse. Cursing himself, he dropped his head to Seth's chest, listening frantically, but all he could hear was his own terrified heart beating in his ears. _Seth! Seth please… My fault, my fault._

Resting his head against Seth's chest, Seto felt as if he was going to shake apart at the seams. _I killed him. I killed my own yami._ He could feel himself shake, as if each muscle in his body was trying to pull loose and spring away like a pack of over stretched rubber bands. _What is wrong with me? Why do I keep messing up like this? I should have listened to him. All he was trying to do was help me, and I kill him with my own idiocy. Stupid, stupid, stupid._ _First Jo, then Mokie, now Seth. Gozaburo was right, I am worthless. _

"Shhhh." A slender hand slid through his hair, as the chest beneath his cheek shifted. "Shhh, my light. He was wrong; you are **my** most cherished light, and I am proud of you, even now."

"Seth." Seto raised his head, looking into his yami's now awake eyes. "Seth are you…"

Seth's blue eyes closed his hand falling limply to his side. "Tired."

"Seth…I'm… I should never have…" Seto reached out, touching his dark's cheek. "I'll do whatever you say, from now on. I'll even meditate."

A small smile tugged at Seth's lips.

"Seth?"

"You need to go back, my light. You don't belong here." Seth opened his eyes again. "Go take care of Jo and your brother. I need rest."

"Seth, I'm not leaving you." Seto shook his head, gesturing toward the glittering branches that surrounded them. "There might be…five headed leeches, or…slugs…or Bakura, out there."

"I trust my pharaoh wouldn't leave me in such a place." Seth closed his eyes a moment, raising one hand unsteadily to touch Seto's shoulder. A second later his eyes opened, glowing eerily. "Go."

"NO! Seth!" Seto felt a sudden swoop, as if he'd plunged off the top of the highest rollercoaster in KiabaLand, into freefall. "SETH!"

"SETH!" Kaiba shot up panting, nearly falling of the edge of the bed. Only to be caught and steadied by a startled Jonouchi. "Seth, where are you? Seth!" Kaiba thrashed around, still half aware of where he was. "Seth!"

Jo held on and pulled him back from the edge of the bed.

Kaiba looked around a bit wildly. "Where's Seth?"

Jo shook his head, scooting back on the bed, tugging Kaiba with him. The brunet resisted, quivering against his arms.

_Seth!_ He felt a slight shifting in the back of his mind, as if someone had sleepily rolled over.

"He sent me away. He needs help and he sent me away." Kaiba looked around the room, startled and confused. The room was small and rather cramped, with a rolled up futon at the end of the bed and a window that looked out over a dusty alley. The sun was starting to dip downward, shadowing a sky filled with dusky reds and hazy yellows. At the window, a sleepy Rainbow Flower was curling its petals around itself with a contented hum. He turned slightly to face Jonouchi. "Jo?"

Jonouchi gave him a smile, tightening his hold into a hug.

"Are you okay Jo? Where's Mokuba?" Kaiba looked jerkily around, still trying to process where he was.

Jo watched him, giving him time to collect himself, but keeping his arms wrapped around his lover. After all they had been through, he was semi-worried that if he let go, Kaiba would disappear, collapse, get attacked, or be sucked into the Shadow Realm. He could feel Kaiba taking deep breaths, deliberately trying to calm himself. With one final shiver, Kaiba seemed to deflate slightly. Jo leaned back, pulling Kaiba with him as he rested his back against the wall. Jo shifted his legs around till Kaiba was cradled between them, his head resting against his chest.

"Mokuba?"

Jo pointed towards the door with a small grin. He wrapped an arm around Kaiba's shoulders, while the other stroked the rumpled brown hair out of Kaiba' face, carefully watching Kaiba blink sense back into his eyes.

"Downstairs?" Kaiba slid his arms around Jonouchi's waist and closed his eyes, listening to the steady heartbeat beneath his ear. The more he relaxed, the more he could sense his yami, sleeping at the edges of his soul. He pressed closer to Jo. It was nice, laying there, warm and safe with his lover. No worries, no stress, just him and Jo. But it wasn't reality. Reality was a messed up relationship, a blown up house, his business in shambles, his yami hurt, and his little brother in danger. He nuzzled against Jo's stomach, allowing himself one more moment before he let reality back in.

"You Jo? Are you okay?" Kaiba looked up at Jonouchi, then pushed himself away, trying to put distance between him and his love. "I'm sorry Jo. About… I shouldn't have pushed you. You weren't ready and…"

Jo frowned, shaking his head.

Kaiba turned his head, pulling farther away, Jo's frown telling him all he needed to know. "I don't blame you for being angry…"

Jo shook his head again, pulling Kaiba forward into a kiss. _My fault love, not yours. I was the one that pounced on you._

Unhappily, Kaiba couldn't hear him, but he did understand the kiss. For one moment, he resisted, uncertain, then he closed his eyes, sighing softly, letting Jo slip into his mouth. He could feel Jo's fingers lifting to cradle his head, his legs shifting around him, embracing him. He relaxed farther, letting Jonouchi roll them till he was on his back, being sheltered under Jo's weight. The blonde's lips moving to caress along his jaw.

"Jo?" He breathed softly, as his ear received a small nip. "Jo are you sure? I …"

Jo's lips came back covering his, softly caressing. His hand slid forward stroking down Kaiba's face, one thumb smoothing over his jaw comfortingly. Hesitantly, Kaiba lifted his arms and loosely wrapped them around Jo's waist, half expecting Jo to jump away, but the blonde just settled himself onto him like a warm blanket.

Jo smiled to himself as he felt the last bit of tension fade from the body beneath him. _That's it love, that's it. Come back to me. Forget for awhile. Just be here with me.. _He trailed kisses down Kaiba's throat, as the brunet tipped his head back allowing him to do as he wished.He reached back and caught Kaiba's hands, winding their fingers together. _I love you. Let me show you how much…_

There was a sudden deep boom from down stairs and the building swayed. Jo jerked up, startled as Kaiba shifted beneath him looking toward the door.

"Mokuba!"

* * *

**Happy Holloween!!!**


	25. Attacks

AN: _points to fic_ See I got it out on time…. _glows proudly, then realizes she's got half of FFVII to play and slinks off to her den of video mayhem._

**Psyche**

Chapter Twenty Five:

* * *

OCs

**Ahmose: (Egyptian for: The moon is born)** Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on**: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame**: Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon**: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara**: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori**: **(Japanese for: Ice)** The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr**: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be.He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt.

**Shimo**: **(Japanese for: Frost)** The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai**: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

* * *

**Kami Game Shop**

Grandpa and Pegasus were, quite honestly, cowering down in the shop, having seen the sugar, the Indiana Jones accessories, and the horror of what Isis claimed was gyro sandwiches. Solomon was half-heartedly dusting a shelf as Pegasus sorted through some Duel Monster cards, arranging them to best show off the art work. Except for a few stray noises and an occasional visit from Isis, they rested in peace and quiet.

"You really thought the pyramids in Ethiopia were interesting?" Pegasus fondly placed a Toon World Blue Eyes on a small stand and angled it so the holographic image glittered in the showcase.

"Oh, yes," Solomon carefully removed a stack of Greedopoly games from the shelf and sprayed furniture cleaner. "While they lacked the nearly overwhelming splendor of Egypt's tombs, I am rather fond of them. My late wife and I had a marvelous time on our honeymoon exploring one."

Pegasus bowed his head a moment, pretending to be absorbed in rubbing a tiny smug off a card. "Yes…that would make them special."

Oblivious to Pegasus, Solomon restacked the boxes. "We had a fantastic time. One day we went out for a picnic. I had to carry…"

A sharp knocking at the game shop's door caused him to pause. Both men looked over to find Duke standing at the door. The teen was hugging himself, shivering.

"Duke! My boy…" Pegasus hurried over to the door. "My God, what has happened to you?"

"He looks like he's been in a fight." Grandpa darted toward the store room. "I've got a first aide kit here someplace."

Pegasus fumbled with the door lock. "Poor boy. Who could have done this?" He finally turned the key and stepped aside. "Come in quickly, my boy. Quickly!"

Duke, head down and shivering stumbled into him, then quickly grabbed him. Solomon, emerging from the storeroom with the kit, stepped back shocked as the two fell to the floor struggling. Upstairs, Isis's voice called down anxiously.

"The Eye! He's got the…" Pegasus trailed off into a long drawn out cry of anguish, thrashing on the floor and holding his face.

Duke fell limp to the side, a moment later Pegasus stopped moving as well, laying unmoving on the floor, curled on his side.

"Pegasus?" Solomon set the first aide kit down as Isis, raced into the shop.

"What has happened?" Isis looked at the two prone figures, then checked around the shop.

"Duke… he…" Solomon trailed off as Pegasus groaned and sat up, holding his head.

"What happened?" Pegasus rasped, shaking his head slightly. "I was…" He looked over at Duke and then around the shop. "Oh." He reached over and shook Duke. "Wake up Duke-boy. No sleeping on the job."

Duke sat up and clumsily got to his feet.

"Wait…I don't think." Isis began, stepping forward.

Pegasus shrugged, not turning to face her. "That's obvious." He turned, smiling, the Millennium Eye gleaming in his eye socket. He raised his hand. "Spirit bind."

They didn't even have time to scream.

**Hikaris**

"That idiot." Ryou was nearly frothing at the mouth. The once mild, soft spoken, gentle light was busy snarling insults at and about his other. "Too cocky for my own good. Okay, what do you think now, dolt? Gonna try that again?"

Mokuba, Yugi, and Malik huddled together on the couch in awe as the white haired hikari paced back and forth growling. They had all been watching the movie, when suddenly Ryou had just fallen over. At first they'd been worried, but that had quickly changed as Ryou started his tirade. And a mighty odd tirade it was too. Long too. He'd been cussing for nearly fifteen minutes strait.

"My own knife! You moronic son of a halfwit poodle. Who died and made you Electra?" Ryou continued his rant. It was odd, but he felt…mixed, swirled together, as if he was still Ryou, but at the same time, he was now Bakura. This uncontrollable anger that he felt, he was slightly startled to realize, was directed mostly at himself…Bakura.

"Ryou?" Malik hesitantly interrupted. "Are you…?"

Ryou whipped around, "Do I look okay?!"

"Uhmm, yeah." Mokuba ventured.

Yugi shifted. "Did something happen to Bakura?"

"Knifed. Went bouncing around like Tigger on speed and got my fool self skewered by his own knife." Ryou stalked around the room agitatedly. _Ryou, Ryou, I'm Ryou…Ryou, Ryou, Bakur…Ryou! I am not…Bakura. I'm…I am... hurt. Oh Ra it hurts! I am…Bakura is…an idiot._

The TV droned softly, as the white haired hikari stalked around muttering to himself. The rest watched fascinated as Ryou cussed, not sure if they should interfere, or if they should grab a video camera and record the event.

Yugi, though was worried. _Yami! Ryou…he's acting weird._

_Not surprised. _Yami's voice soothed through his mind. _The thief is hurt. Are you well?_

_Fine. _Yugi watched as Ryou stood glaring at the TV, cursing. _Are you hurt?_

_More embarrassed than anything. We went rushing into this like a bunch of idiots._ Yami sounded disgusted with himself. _We're headed back now. Stay safe my light, and keep an eye on Ryou._

_Love you. _Yugi felt Yami's mind slip away. He turned to the others "They're on their way home."

Mokuba tore his eyes away from Ryou and looked at Yugi. "Is everything alright?"

"Bakura got hurt." Yugi nodded to where Ryou was now pulling his own hair. "Yami said to keep an eye on him."

Malik nodded toward the now hissing hikari, "Marik says that with the amount of Shadow Magic floating around where Bakura got hurt, things might get a bit odd…"

A sonic boom pounded through the apartment, causing everyone to jump.

"What the…" Malik scrambled off the couch and darted into the kitchen. "Isis what the hell… Isis?"

Mokuba, Yugi and a still muttering Ryou crowded in behind him. The kitchen was empty. A pot of gently boiling something steamed peacefully on the stove. On the counter a small pile of vegetables were washed and waiting to be sliced. Stacks of fresh made pitas sat under a small kitchen towel.

"Sister?" Malik trotted down the steps, feeling everyone following him.

Pegasus stood at the foot of the stairs with a shadowy figure lurking behind him. "It's okay Yugi-boy." He raised one hand and slammed it against the mystic barrier that the yamis had erected. Another boom echoed through the house. "I'll be there in a moment." He smiled up at them, his long silver hair falling away from his face revealing the Eye.

"Shit!" Malik back peddled.

The rest scrambled frantically up the stairs and tumbled back into the kitchen.

"Mokuba?!" Kaiba's voice called from the living room. "Mokuba, where are you?"

"Big Brother!" Mokuba dashed into the living room, followed by the rest of the group.

Kaiba was carefully walking down the stairs with Jonouchi hovering beside him, trying to pretend that he wasn't really hovering. The brunet seemed slightly unsteady on his feet as he leaned against the banister.

Mokuba launched himself at his brother. "Seto, it is you? Is it really you, or are you Seth?"

Kaiba hugged him closer, petting his brother's wild black hair, "It's me, Mokie. What's going on?" He looked at the anxious frightened faces that huddled around, noting the way his brother clung to him, frightened.

"The Eye. It's got Pegasus." Ryou glanced back nervously at the door. "He's trying to come up."

Jonouchi slipped past the two siblings and went into the kitchen. He hurried back out, shaking his head and pointing to the back exit. Another boom shook the shop followed by a triumphant laugh.

"Correction. He is coming up." Malik pulled Ryou toward the door.

Kaiba nodded and pushed Mokuba after them. "Go. We'll hold him here."

Mokuba dug in his heels. "No way. If you stay, I stay."

"Mokuba, you'll…." Kaiba was interrupted as Pegasus stepped into the living room.

"Kaiba-boy, you look well." He grinned at them as Duke, holding a kitchen knife, ghosted up behind him. "I'll have to fix that."

Ryou gave a snarl and leapt at Duke. "Give me that."

Kaiba shoved Mokuba into Yugi and both out the door. "Go. Get him out of here."

Malik, having been half out the door when Ryou bolted back in, got shoved to the railing as Yugi and Mokuba careened into him. "Watch it!"

Jonouchi dove for Pegasus, his shoulder catching the white haired man in the stomach, sending them both to the ground as Ryou danced nimbly around Duke. Kaiba shoved the back door closed and locked it behind him. He turned in time to see Pegasus grab a nearby floor lamp and slam it into Jo's head, sending the blond into a senseless heap on the floor.

"NO! Big Brother!" Mokuba screamed from the other side of the door, pounding on it, trying to get back to his only family. "Nonononono!"

Pegasus turned and found him leaning against the door. "Kaiba-boy." He stepped over Jo's unmoving form. "I see you've returned from your vaction. Too bad, now I'll have to kill you."

Kaiba, standing protectively by the door, noted sickly that blood was already tracing its way across Jo's cheek and dripping onto the carpet. Pegasus grinned, that insane grin he remembered so well from Duelist Kingdom, and kicked Jo aside. _Mokie, go. Just go. Jo needs me._

"Oh well, everyone's got to go sooner or later." The white haired man tipped his head to the side, as if contemplating. "Let's make it sooner. You wouldn't want him to be lonely, would you?"

Ryou had gotten the knife away from Duke and was circling him, with a very Bakura like grin on his face. Duke shifted warily, his eyes glued to his opponent, he reached behind him and pulled another knife out of the back of his jean's waist band.

"Hey Duke, time for pay back." Ryou swiped at the other teen, snarling softly.

The pounding on the door finally ceased and from the corner of his eye, Kaiba could see Malik and Yugi dragging Mokuba down the alley toward the street. He hoped that the two lights were heading for their darknesses. Yami would take care of Mokuba. Pegasus was almost on him, lifting the lamp to attack when he kicked out, sending the older man to the ground.

"Fuck off, whoever you are." Kaiba grabbed the lamp, trying to wrestle it out of Pegasus's hands.

"Bitch, get back here." Ryou grabbed Duke as the other tried to get back to the kitchen, sending them both to the floor behind the couch.

Pegasus laughed, "Isn't this fun?" The smile suddenly wiped away, and the blue eye facing Kaiba turned murky and cold. "You destroyed everything. Everything I worked for for so long. You could have had anything. Power. Wealth. Everything. All my sacrifices! I gave my soul for you!"

Kaiba wrenched at the lamp, but Pegasus, possessed lunatic that he was, didn't let go. Pegasus used his weight to shove Kaiba back, tripping him over the coffee table. Kaiba fell, rolling to the side as the lamp slammed down against the table, causing it to crack. He scrambled back as Pegasus raised the lamp again.

"Kaiba! Behind you!" A hoarse, frantic voice yelled.

Kaiba rolled away as Duke sprang at him. Duke's knife slammed into the carpet where he'd been laying a second before. Ryou, pounced after his target, dragging him back as Jo rushed at Pegasus, slamming the man into the entertainment unit. Shelves slipped and crashed to the floor. The lamp clattered down as Pegasus brought his hands up to grab Jo by the throat. Kaiba grabbed the lamp and jumped to his feet, lifting the lamp to attack. Pegasus quickly shifted, turning so Jo was between him and Kaiba, then shoved the blond into Kaiba, sending them both back to the floor.

"Fun time's over. We're about to have guests." Pegasus stepped around the couch and grinned. "Duke, you really were a useful puppet, but sacrifices have to be made. Dark magic attack" He gestured with a hand and both Ryou and Duke were catapulted across the living room to slam side by side into the wall with enough force to leave dents in the plaster. He turned raising his hand again to where Jo and Kaiba were staggering to their feet. "So fitting, to use the pharaoh's attack to destroy his lap dog." His eyes narrowed at Kaiba. "That's all you are. The pharaoh's lap dog. Dark magic attack." Jo shoved Kaiba aside as a bolt of dark energy exploded toward them.

**Yamis**

Marik hitched the semi-conscious thief over his shoulder. "Damn, you're heavy. Turn back to Ryou. He's lighter."

Bakura whispered a soft. "Righty-o."

"Great. His brain's scrambled." Malik hurried along the street with Yami.

They'd gotten out of the shop as quickly as they could bundle the wounded thief up and get down the stairs. Whatever magics their enemy had been using, were unraveling, causing a lot of Shadow power to twist and whirl erratically through the shop, making it dangerous for the healthy yamis to be there, much less the wounded one.

"Hurry." Yami kept glancing around, ready in case more soulless puppets showed up. "Duke has the Eye, and I don't like to think of what he's going to do with it."

"Hope he washes it off. It's got to be filthy." Bakura mumbled.

"I'm hauling the thief around as fast as I can. Leave me alone." Marik stumbled as Malik's panicked voice screamed in his head. _Yami! He's here. He's got the Eye!_ "Found him. At the shop." _Malik, come to me. I'm here._ He gave a pull, drawing his light's mind in his direction. He could feel his light frantically rushing toward him. _Is he chasing you? Are you alright?_

_He's at the shop. Kaiba locked us out._ Malik was drawing closer.

Yami had stopped in his tracks with a far away look on his face. A moment later, he shook himself awake and ran down the street, Marik on his heels, as they both raced toward their hikaris. They were only a couple blocks from the shop when Yugi, Malik and a distraught Mokuba came into sight. The two lights threw themselves at their darks.

"It's got Pegasus!" Yugi wrapped himself around his yami, feeling safe as soon as his dark's arms closed around him.

"Malik, breathing. It's not just a hobby." Marik gasped, trying to not lose his hold on the semi-conscious thief and peel his suffocating light off him. Malik loosened his hold, but stayed tightly pressed to his dark. _Your safe, my light. I am here and I won't let anyone harm you._

"You have to help. Big Brother locked us out! When they attacked he shoved us out the door and locked it." Mokuba was frantically pulling at Yami's sleeve. "Please! Help him!"

The pharaoh nodded, giving his hikari a parting caress. He brushed a kiss against Yugi's forehead and pulled himself free. "Yes. You take Bakura and go. We'll meet in the park at the gazebo. If anyone comes, get out of there and we'll meet at Starbucks at Domino Plaza."

Marik passed the thief over to his light, Mokuba sliding up to help support Bakura. "Don't trust anyone. That thing is sucking out people's souls, so the next attack could come from anyone."

"Don't worry." Yugi gave a brave smile. "We'll be extra-careful." He stroked a hand down his yami's arm. "You be careful."

Yami nodded and took off toward the shop with Marik at his side. People on the street scattering out of their way as the two sped past them in the lowering twilight. The streetlights were just flickering on when they arrived. The shop looked quiet and still in the watery dusk.

Cautiously, they opened the front door and scanned the area. Isis and Grandpa lay on the floor, unmoving in front of the counter. No sounds came from upstairs. They ghosted by the two on the floor, pausing only to verify that they were still breathing, before slipping silently up the stairs into the kitchen.

Marik slid to the door, cracking it open to peer into the living room. "No one."

Yami nodded and they both glided forward as silent as shadows. The living room was wrecked. Tables were over turned, the floor lamp was bent and thrown to one side, the TV flickered softly, and the entertainment unit was knocked aside with its contents scattered onto the floor. Off to one side, Ryou and Duke were collapsed together into a pile against one wall. Yami cat padded over to them then noticed Kaiba and Jonouchi tumbled together against the sofa. Marik wraithed up the stairs. A moment later, as Yami went over to check Jonouchi and Kaiba he walked back down.

"No one's here." He looked around at the mess frowning. "He left them. Why?"

Yami shrugged, carefully rolling Jo off Kaiba. "This just happened. He might have sensed us and decided to settle this later."

"Yeah, because we're just so damn intimidating." Marik snorted. "If we get any more pathetic, he won't have to come after us. We'll do ourselves in."

Yami nodded. "True. We've been fumbling around." He shook his head. "We're so used to dueling, that we're unprepared for an actual attack like this."

Marik knelt down next to Ryou and Duke. "Any ideas what we're going to do with dice boy?"

"None." Yami carefully pushed Jo's hair aside to look at the gash on his head. "There's some rope downstairs in the store room."

The blond yami nodded, picking up the knives that lay next to the fallen pair he'd been examining. "I'll check on Isis and Grandpa while I'm there."

* * *

Review! Who do you thin our mystery baddie is? 


	26. Emotions

AN: I really had problems with this chapter. First, I realized I've been dragging my feet because I don't want my story to end. I've really had fun with it and it's winding up. While I am sure y'all are going to cheer when it's completed, I'm going to cry. So I started a Rurouni Kenshin story to cheer me up. Second, Seth and Seto kept arguing in my head. I hope you like the compromise I brokered. Now that Seth and Seto are no longer being control freaks with dominance issues, the story should flow along nicely. Last, I got busy with school and work. I'll **try** to behave from now on, but no promises. This chapter has not been even slightly proof read. I wanted to get it out to you as soon as possible.

* * *

**Psyche**

Chapter Twenty Six: Emotions

* * *

OCs 

**Ahmose: (Egyptian for: The moon is born)** Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on**: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame**: Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon**: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara**: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori**: **(Japanese for: Ice)** The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr**: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be.He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt.

**Shimo**: **(Japanese for: Frost)** The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai**: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

* * *

**Seth**

Seth woke in his soul room with his hikari snuggled under his chin. Half asleep, he muzzily cuddled his other closer thinking vaguely that Seto must have fallen asleep, and how nice it was to wake up with his hikari safe in his arms and finally getting better. He wavered pleasantly in limbo between being awake and asleep, toying with the thought of falling back to sleep, a decadent activity he had rarely had the luxury of indulging in; and waking, going to his study, and performing the spell to give him his own body. With Seto mending, he could now step into the physical realm without feeling he was neglecting his duties to his light.

After a few more pleasurable moments, he carefully disentangled himself from Seto's arms and sat up, blinking the room into focus. He was mildly surprised at the sudden pounding headache he felt. Not to mention the sudden swoop of nausea and the aching protest of all his muscles at his movement. _I honestly didn't think I would feel this bad…_

He turned to his light and blinked a few more times trying to figure out what he was seeing. Seto, who last time he had seen him had been getting better, was now back to looking like the victim of a gang mugging.

_What the…? _He frowned, then with a sigh shook his head. _My beloved light, you are really too prone to get into trouble. How did Jonouchi manage you for so long by himself? _

He carefully checked Seto, decided he was more bruised then seriously harmed, covered his hikari with a blanket, and then took over their body. When he opened his eyes he found Mokuba sitting at the side of a bed looking worried.

"Big Brother!" The child promptly flung himself into Seth's arms.

Seth cautiously held the child away. "…is asleep again. What was it this time?"

Mokuba stiffened for a second, then drooped. "They came here to the house and Seto shoved me out the door. I didn't see…" He looked anxiously at Seth. "Is he okay?"

Seth nodded. "As soon as he wakes up he'll be back with you." Seth swung his legs over and sat up. "Was anyone else hurt?"

Mokuba nodded, "Ryou, Bakura, Jonouchi, and Duke."

"Where's Jonouchi?" Seth got to his feet and wobbled slightly as he realized the position the body had been laying in had caused one foot to fall asleep. Cursing slightly, shaking that foot, and limping ungracefully, he stumbled towards the door.

"In Yugi and Yami's bedroom." Mokuba tagged along behind him as Seth made his way down the hall. "He got hurt pretty bad and Yami wanted to keep a close eye on him."

Seth nodded. Since standing up, he had been making a running catalog of Seto's injuries. Mostly, as was reflected in Seto's soul form, just bruises. The only worrisome injury was a searing tingle down his right shoulder. He recognized the feeling as the after burn of a rather powerful spell. Whatever it had been, Seto thankfully had only been on the periphery of it.

He carefully opened the door to the pharaoh and his light's bedroom. Jonouchi was laying on the floor, nestled in a small stack of futons, with a fluffy white blanket tucked around him. His blond hair was sticking up in unruly spikes above a bandage that wrapped around his head. On the bed, Yami was sleeping, looking pale. His light hovered at his side, dividing his attention between his unconscious friend and his exhausted darkness. Seth stepped in quietly.

"Oh, Kiaba…" Yugi blinked tiredly at him.

"Seth." Seth corrected going over to kneel next to Jo. "How are they?"

Yugi looked worried. "Jo hasn't woken up yet. He has a pretty deep cut on his head and…" He unconsciously reached out to touch his yami's hand, as if seeking reassurance. "..Yami says that he took most of a magic attack." He glanced at his dark. "Yami is tired. He spent most of the night trying to help Jo and Ryou."

Seth nodded, tugging the blanket down and carefully examining Jonouchi. He didn't try to look under the bandage, but gently opened Jo's eyes, watching how each one dilated. Not pleased with the results, he shifted the blond head slightly and noted a burn, down the back of Jonouchi's head that he was sure matched the one presently nipping at his shoulder,.

"The mark goes down most of his back and hip." Yugi was peering carefully from his perch. "Yami thinks it was a dark magic attack."

Seth nodded. That would match the feel of the burn, and the mark on Jonouchi. "How long?"

"It happened last night." Mokuba was peering over Seth's shoulder. "We were watching a movie and then Pegasus went crazy and …" He trailed off, looking scared.

_That would have been what…a couple hours at most after I fell asleep. _Inwardly he gave a weary sigh. _He didn't even manage to stay out of trouble one entire day…_

"We best wait to see how he is when he wakes up." Seth stood up, giving his light's brother an small encouraging smile.

Yugi nodded. "Yami thinks whoever cast it wasn't really very good at it, so it wasn't as powerful as it could have been."

"True." Seth gently steered Mokuba out of the room, mentally translating the pharaoh's message. Jonouchi had gotten off lucky. Seto, even with an unconscious yami, had some magical resistance because of his presence. Jonouchi had faced their enemy with nothing more than his stubbornness and, if the burn patterns gave him any clue to what had happened, the desire to protect the one he loved. Jo could easily have had his soul extinguished out, leaving them to mourn over his slowly dying shell. The spellcaster, though, hadn't either the skill or power to effectively cast the spell, so Jo's soul was still intact, and with any luck, unharmed.

"…down in the kitchen." Mokuba was tugging at his hand.

"Hmmm?" Seth shook himself out of his thoughts, looking curiously at the child.

"Malik has snacks down in the kitchen." Mokuba repeated. "Are you hungry?"

Seth nodded absently, inwardly noting that Mokuba was back to his favorite past time of getting him to eat. He wasn't particularly hungry, but at the same time, if it gave the child comfort, Seto could stand the extra food.

As they entered the livingroom, a groggy looking Bakura was sitting on the couch with his light's head pillowed in his lap. The thief was stroking his hikari's hair absently, while dazedly watching a small blue train talk on the television. He only gave them a half focused glance as they walked through to the kitchen.

The kitchen was filled with people. Honda was fixing coffee, while chewing on a piece of peanut butter covered toast. Malik was setting a plate of tiny muffins from a now empty plastic box that was laying like a dead turtle on the counter. Anzu and Mai were whipping eggs into a froth and creating omelets by the stove. Shadi was sitting with his head pillowed on his crossed arms at the table, snoring softly amidst the din of the group around him.

"Hey, what happened to the chopped onions?" Anzu looked around suspiciously.

Malik shrugged, "They aren't in the muffins, so don't look evil at me."

"Anyone else want toast?" Honda reached over for the bread.

"Me." Anzu nodded.

"Yeah, me too." Mai flipped an omelet onto a plate and slid it onto the table.

Mokuba sat down and grabbed a mini-muffin. "Make one for Seth."

Mai nodded, reaching for more eggs. "Any chance of Yugi or Yami joining us?"

"Or Jo?" Honda added.

Seth shook his head, "No, but Yugi would most likely appreciate some food being brought to him."

Anzu nodded, sliding a plate under a omelet that Mai lifted out of the pan. "Yes. Some toast too, and no peanut butter."

Honda smeared some butter on a couple of slices and dropped them on the plate. "Get some muffins too. Yugi likes them."

"Too many breads." Malik stuffed a muffin in his mouth, as Anzu reached over his shoulder and snagged a few to add to the plate.

Mai handed her a glass of juice as Anzu headed out of the kitchen. "Don't forget this and see if Bakura is finished watching Teddy the Train. Ryou could use some food."

Seth sat down and found himself instantly in possession of a plate full of food. He picked up a fork with a small smile. _The dragons would be so proud._ "Now, would someone explain to me what happened last night?"

**Yami**

The slender trunk of the palm tree bent in the dessert wind. Yami could feel it as he leaned back against it, watching the line of priests wind down into the funerary temple. Considering the rank of the person they were attending to, the line was both short and shoddily prepared. The priest's robes flapped in ragged tatters around their frames as they dourly trudged through the sand laden wind.

"I always wanted to be like him." Seth stood leaning tiredly against the tree watching the procession. "I would watch him, standing at your father's side, and think some day I will do the same."

Yami nodded. "I remember."

Seth didn't acknowledge the comment, his eyes locked on the ragged priests. "Every day, no matter what that day brought. I worked for that. To be him."

The wind swirled around them, sending bits of sand to sting against their skin. The sound of the priest's chants whispered up to them, a sad rhythmic sound calling blessings down from heaven. A small hint of cheap incense from the temple wafted along the breeze.

"I remember when I was told he was my father." Seth bowed his head. "I was proud. I wondered if I had made him proud."

Yami nodded, shifting slightly so that his foot rested against Seth's, to give his cousin a physical reminder that he wasn't alone. Right now there was nothing to say, or do, except be there.

Seth looked down at their feet, then turned his attention back to the funeral. "Why?"

"I don't know." Yami whispered, his words swallowed in the wind.

"He had everything. Everything I worked all my life for. Why?" Seth's voice dropped.

"He was a good man once." Yami nodded to where a still form on a bier was being carried by a group of priests down to the temple.

"Once…" Seth shook his head, unacknowledged tears falling to the sand at his feet like the rarest desert rain. "Not anymore. His soul is damned."

"He was asked to do too much and he broke." Yami watched the priests carry the form up the stairs that lead to the temple. "My father asked for too much. He didn't consider the effect…"

"No. Your father only asked for the duty owed him." Seth turned his back on the procession that was slowly entering the temple, disappearing one by one into the darkness. "My father… went too far." He slumped down to sit against the palm's trunk as the last of the priests faded into the gloom. "And what frightens me most, given the circumstances, given that order, I would do the same."

"Then I will never ask that of you." Yami leaned his head back against the trunk of the tree, gazing at the sky. "In the end, we all die. I will not have the death of your soul on my conscience."

"And if it isn't your life, but the lives of others? The life of the kingdom?" Seth shook his head. "Don't be naive. If circumstances were the same, you would give the same order."

Yami made a sharp denying gesture with his hand. "No. I would not. I would find another way. I may gamble my soul, but I will not gamble another's. If the worse came, I would do it myself, and bear the consequences alone."

"It doesn't matter." Seth leaned forward resting his forehead against his raised knees. "In the end, because of him, we may already all be damned."

Yami looked down at the puzzle that hung around his neck, then closed his eyes, and shook his head.

"Wouldn't it have been better, if he hadn't…" Seth's voice was muffled.

"Would? Should?" Yami sighed. "Wouldn't it have been better… Shouldn't we have done… What is the point of asking? We have to face the situation we are in, not the one we wish we were in."

Seth didn't look up. "I'm tired."

Yami touched his arm. "We still have time. We might be able to do something."

Seth looked up, facing him. "We both know there is little to be done. The items are irreversibly tainted. The closer the bond… the more time spent with the item… Damn him." Seth sat back violently, hitting his head against the tree trunk. "I was only a child when he handed the Rod to me. A reward... damn him. And you, how long have you been near the Puzzle? Since you were a babe in arms? The others might get free, but you and I…"

"And your father…" Yami looked back up at the sky. "he's had that eye from the beginning…"

Yami woke, finding himself staring at the familiar ceiling of Yugi's room. "Akenaden."

**Bakura**

Bakura sat, being very still, all his attention on the soft sound of Ryou's breathing. A delicate sound, one that he was terrified that he wouldn't hear unless he paid absolute attention to it. Afraid, if his attention wandered, even for an instant, the sound would stop, never to start again.

The wound in his side was nothing; the sight of his hikari laying still in the wreckage of the fight, that was everything. He had a few blurry memories of what had happened. A half remembered image of Pegasus smiling. A faint impression of leaping at Duke. A sudden lightning flash of protective fear, of shoving Ryou's soul out of the way as something dark raced toward them, then the image of standing over Ryou, leaning on Malik's shoulder, looking down at his delicate light laying still on the floor, then silence. Silence broken only by Ryou's quiet breath.

"Do you think Ryou would like something to eat?" Anzu leaned over the back of the couch. He could feel the couch back dip and bulge under her weight.

Bakura didn't look at her. The sound of her voice was an annoyance, but he couldn't do anything about it unless he let his attention shift away, and he couldn't do that. Ryou needed him to listen, so he was listening.

"Well, when he wakes up. Breakfast's ready."

_Wake up?_ Bakura stroked Ryou's hair, matching his breathing to Ryou's. _Wake up?_ The concept slipped past his grasp, only the steady inhale and exhale of air was important. Waking up? What would that mean? It didn't matter. He was here to listen, not to wake up.

Time shifted, passing only in measures of air. In. Out. In. Out. A terrifying pause, then a small sniffle. In. Out. In.

"…shock." Another voice was speaking, quieter, accented, not the pharaoh, but familiar,. "Not surprising really. "

"What should we do?" A child's voice whispered from a small distance.

"When Ryou wakes, Bakura should as well." A deeper voice came from behind him, the pharaoh's.

There was a tap of hurried feet and something warm wrapped around him.

"Isn't he awake? His eyes are open." It was Anzu again, sounding a bit breathless.

He felt another blanket being placed over Ryou. He brushed at it, slightly worried that the weight would smoother his light.

"Leave it Bakura. He needs to stay warm." The pharaoh's voice again, but it made sense and the weight didn't seem to be bothering Ryou.

"No, not really. He is only partially aware." The other, accented voice. The priest? "…dreaming, probably."

"Leave him be. He'll probably kill you if you wake him up." Marik. But wasn't Marik…? No, he'd been the one who…no, wait…listen…listen. Ryou needed him to listen.

And they were alone again. He brushed his fingers down Ryou's cheek. His light was slightly cold. That might be the reason for that sniffle. Guilt pulled at him. He was Ryou's yami. He should have thought of the blanket. He should have thought, but he didn't and that's what got them into this.

**Yami**

Seth turned away, staring blindly at the refrigerator.

"It has to be him." Yami, aware of his hikari's watchful eyes, dutifully continued to eat his omelet, no matter that he thought dried hippo meat had a better flavor. Camel was looking good to him too.

"Whoa. Talk about dysfunctional family reunions." Honda sat down at the table with a thump.

Seth's back quivered a second, then he turned and stalked out of the kitchen heading back up to the bedrooms. Yami watched him go. Yugi stood up, but Yami pulled him back down.

"Leave him be." Yami took a bite of peanut butter toast, in an attempt to get the taste of Mai's cooking out of his mouth. _Peanut butter…not strong enough. How about nail polish remover?_

"He looks upset." Yugi worried.

"He has good reasons to be upset." Yami washed the peanut butter out of his mouth with a gulp of chocolate milk. "Akenaden tried to have me assassinated to put Seth on the throne." Yami nodded toward the door. "Seth as head of the guard was the one to hunt him down and arrest him. It wasn't… good."

"Man, having to arrest your old man." Honda grabbed a few mini-muffins and started eating. "Not good is an understatement."

"And now he's back." Mai was leaning against the counter sipping coffee. "Got a few issues too."

Yami nodded. "He had issues then too. He was driven mad by the creation of the Millennium Items."

"Ya mean, when he killed off…" Honda glanced toward the living room where the sleeping thief still sat patting his hikari.

"Yes. My father put too much on him." Yami pushed the rest of his omelet around his plate with his fork, absently wondering if he could push it right off the plate. "He placed the entire welfare of Egypt, all those lives, on Akenaden's shoulders. Uncle was a loyal man. He did what his pharaoh asked him to, and didn't count the cost to himself as important."

"And it destroyed him." Yugi set a cup of coffee on the table and started shoveling sugar into it.

"In the end, it destroyed all of us." Yami shoved his plate away, ignoring his light's reproachful look and Mai's glower.

"Now he wants to revisit old times." Marik munched on his toast, leaning against Malik's chair.

"He wants more than that." Yami got up. "He was obsessed with power. He wanted to set Seth on the throne. However, it became obvious, if Seth ever took the throne, Akenaden expected to rule through him." Yami walked over to the counter and took a cup of coffee. "Eventually, he would have killed Seth and taken the throne for himself."

Yami let his mind drift back to Egypt. His first unsure steps after his dark time. How under the disguise of care, Akenaden had tried to strip him of his power.

_"He's not strong enough…"_

_"Don't bother the pharaoh with such trivialities…"_

_"Let Seth deal with this, my pharaoh, you need to take care…"_

_"You need rest, my pharaoh, I will…"_

_"You are still unwell, let me…"_

_"He's still not thinking clearly."_

_" Don't upset him…"_

_"His illness still weighs heavily on his mind, Seth can…"_

_"He may never truly recover…"_

_"He is still the pharaoh, give him respect, but Seth will…"_

_"Ah, my pharaoh, rest awhile longer, I can handle…"_

Yami drank his coffee, watching his memories flutter past like dried crumbling leaves in a sand laden desert breeze. The fine edges crumbling even as he watched. He only wished they'd never come back, but then, if they hadn't… He took another drink.

"Akenaden is after power." Yami frowned into his coffee. "With Pegasus's money and company, he has it."

"But Kaiba…" Yugi started.

"Two birds, one stone." Marik nodded. "Get his revenge and Kaiba's company. Literally, more power to him." He turned and looked out the window. "Did anyone check to see if any pigs were flying around? The thief was right."

Malik snorted.

"He has his moments." Yami grinned slightly.

"Well, Bakura's moment aside," Mai interrupted, "where would he be now?"

"Pegasus has a Domino City office." Mokuba stood at the door frowning at the floor. "He'd probably go there."

"Nice and safe. Probably a ton of security." Marik put his cup down on the table. "We break in and we're the bad guys. We sit here and…"

"He recreates Enas Kuruna to get more items?" Yami shrugged. "Or maybe he'll steal your idea and turn everyone into a mind slave."

"I take it you don't see him calmly creating new games for kiddies." Mai sighed.

"He's after Kaiba Corp." Mokuba shook his head. "It's a game company now, but it used to be one of the major weapons manufacturers in the world. If he gets his hands on our company…"

"Back to bombing the hell out of the world." Honda stood gathering the dirty plates on the table. "He's already got a track record he's gotta maintain."

**Seth and Seto**

Seto sat up in bed and glared around the small room. _Why bother having a soul room when I always end up here?_ He got to his feet and grumbled his way out of the room, down the twisting labyrinth of stairs of his yami's soul room, and found himself again in the temple room. The light fragrance of incense brushed past him as he paused at the bottom step to look around. Candle light shifted through the dimness showing Seth kneeling in front of an alter, haloed in a flickering gold glow. The priest's head was bowed down, as he quietly chanted something that sounded like a prayer.

Seto walked over, consciously suppressing an urge to at the very least nod to the statues of the ancient gods that watched him pass. _Great. He's rubbing off on me._ "Hey."

Seth bowed low to the statue, his forehead touching the ancient stones of the floor, his short brown hair swaying around his pale face. When he straitened, he didn't turn to Seto. His voice was clipped and cold. "Your brother is worried about you. You best see to him."

Seto nodded, feeling a prick of unease. "How's Jo?"

Seth sat back on his heels, still looking at the god on the dais. It was Horus, the god of the pharaohs. "It is too soon yet to know. He still sleeps. When he wakes up we will be able to tell his true condition. "

Seto edged closer, feeling coldness run through him. His yami, his other half was shutting him out. "Seth? What are you not telling me?"

"Leave me be for a time." Seth's neck and shoulders were tense as he kept his attention focused on the god before him. "This is not something I want to burden you with now. Go to Jo and your brother. They need you."

"So when I need you, you take care of me, but if you need me, I should leave?" Seto took a few steps closer to his darkness. Knowing himself, he could see every warning sign that Seth was giving him. The icy tone, the tense unyielding set of his body, the absolute refusal to turn and give attention to something he didn't want to deal with. As he took another step, he wondered when Seth would turn and attack. A couple more steps? A few more words? When the attack came, that was the moment of weakness. The moment when, in himself, he could recognize the break in control.

"This has little to do with yo…" started Seth snarling, then visibly winced. "No, that is not right. It has much to do with you. With us."

Seto stood right behind him. He could _feel_ the distress, the pain radiating from his yami. _Odd. When since could I feel his emotions?_ "What? The pharaoh decide to take over the world? Let him. It's already fucked up. He can't do worse."

He knew that wasn't it, but it gave him a distraction to step closer. Close enough for him to touch his other. Seth jerked at the touch, looking up at him with dark, shadowed eyes. He quickly looked away again._ Almost had you…_

"Just go Seto. Jo needs you now." Seth even while sitting still, seemed to be sliding away from him, escaping through shields of slick ice and frozen deserts of white crystal.

"No." Seto shook his head, holding on tighter. _Soon. Close. He's almost there. I'd have turned and struck back by now…_

Seth shook his hand off, standing up. "You don't… need to be here." He gave Horus one last bow, then brushed Seto aside without looking at him, heading for the stairs. Seth's back was ramrod straight, his cloak flaring and snapping behind him, a warning glitter of cold eyes searing in his wake. The picture of don't-touch-or-you're-deader-then-dead. "You should…"

"Leave you alone?" Seto watched him sweep up the stairs, half annoyed and half impressed as hell. _I wonder if I look like that when I storm out? Too bad you're me and I know that trick…or should I say defense? What are you hiding? _

Seto followed him up the stairs, around all the insane twists, and right back to the room. Seto smiled. _Thought so. The main chamber is a ruse, isn't it. This is the heart of your soul room._ Seth glared at him as he leaned against the door watching his dark.

"Hikari…" Seth's voice was a shadowy warning of doom.

Seto nodded. _Sorry. I know that trick too. Too bad._ He stepped in closing the door behind him. "Tell me."

"Get out." Seth stepped forward, eyes narrowed and threatening.

_Gottcha._ _When in doubt, attack._ But two could play that game. Seto only considered a second, then reached forward. Oddly, it was Yugi's voice in his mind as he grabbed the front of Seth's robes and pulled. _They keep trying to protect you. Even when **they **need protection. _As his lips connected with Seth's, Jo's voice pitched in a comment. _Yami, Yugi, Ryou, Bakura…I'd worry if they weren't together. Ya know…two halves…one whole... it would just be wrong if they weren't._ He could feel Seth's surprise, the quick intake of breath, the shock of suddenly ridged muscles. Hands raised to his forearms, gripping half holding him in place, half struggling to find the will to push him away. But he had a good hold on his darkling and had no intention of letting go.

Seth shivered against him, pulling away. "Seto, you…don't…"

"Shut up, Seth." Seto pulled him back, silencing him with another kiss, his lips and tongue demanding entrance to his yami's mouth, as he stepped forward pushing his other back a step towards the bed.

_Seto…Jo…_His yami's voice slipped through his mind. He wondered if Seth realized there was a trace of desperation in that mind touch.

_I said shut up!_ Seto bit down on Seth's lip, then quickly pressed his advantage as Seth jerked slightly, opening his mouth. He could feel Seth struggling, not physically, physically Seth was still, but he could feel Seth's emotions whipping around him in a storm of frustration, anger, pain, and need.

_Seto! Stop!_ Seth's voice growled, even as he opened his mouth and started fighting Seto for dominance of the kiss.

Seto gasped as he felt fingers pulling at his clothes. _Yeah. Right. Next time try saying it when your not…_ he broke off that thought as Seth slipped a hand under his clothes and brushed his fingers teasingly across his stomach. _…damn…_

Seth shifted, turning them till Seto's knees hit the edge of the bed. He lifted his head freeing Seto's mouth. "I didn't want to do this. Not now." Seth hissed, his tone angry. His hands however were skimming gently across Seto's sides, delicately dancing over his ribs. "You…"

"Shut the fuck up!" Seto fell backwards dragging Seth with him onto the bed.

They wrestled, pushing and tugging at each others clothes. Teeth bit down drawing red to the surface of pale skin as they fought. Hands caressed, grasped, pinched as their clothes scattering across the floor. Their bodies writhed together, limbs wrapping around nearly identical limbs as they struggled.

_You drive me crazy._

_I was perfectly sane till I met you._

_Hardly._

Seto moaned as Seth finally pinned him down to the bed. His yami managing to trap his hands, and using the weight of his body hold him still. He arched up, trying to shift his other off him. Seth only snarled and pressed him down harder into the bed. Long slender fingers shifted off his wrist and slid up into his hair, pulling his head back, exposing his throat. Seth's teeth bit down hard on the soft exposed skin beneath his ear.

His body jolted up against him dark's as he snarled back. "Seth… You bastard. You are not…"

Seth's mouth crushed down on his. _You wanted to push, you pushed, now take the consequences. _

Seto gasped as Seth roughly pulled his shirt down, trapping his arms behind his back. He struggled against it, not liking not being bound. Rarely had he even allowed Jo to hold him helpless. He shuddered as his yami's hands slipped down to hold him still. _Seth…no._

Lips lifted off his and slid downward to the bite mark, lapping it softly. _Do you think I am that angry? _Seth slid his hands around his waist. _Do you think you are not safe?_

Suddenly they flipped, and Seto found himself sprawled across his dark's chest. Without the weight of his body pinning him down, his arms were free. He shrugged out of the shirt, looking down at Seth who lay watching him with dark, unreadable eyes, while his hands massaged the skin of Seto's waist.

_They keep trying to protect you. Even when **they **need protection. _Yugi's voice whispered again.

He leaned down his breath ghosting across Seth's skin. The other didn't respond, only watched him silently as he lowered his head to brush their lips together. _Do you feel afraid? Not safe?_ Seth shifted slightly under him, but didn't respond, even his hands had stilled their caresses.

Seth eyes remained aloof and dark, staring at a point beyond Seto's shoulder. Seto lightly nipped at his lower lip, asking for entrance, that was granted almost absently. He licked across his darkling's teeth, then slipped in deeper, tapping his tongue against Seth's.

_Where are you Seth?_

Seth blinked, his fingers slipping around Seto's hips, splaying across the small of his back. When they rolled this time, Seto found himself on his back, with his arms around Seth's shoulders, as Seth leaned over him on his hands and knees. He bent his head, catching Seto in a kiss, before lowering himself to press against his light.

_Seth?_

Seth's hands slid out from under him and skimmed down his legs, urging them to part to allow him to rest between them. Seto shifted, allowing his yami to shift him, as they continued to kiss, a slow slide of tongue coiled around tongue. When they parted, Seth lowered his head to nuzzle against his ear, nibbling on the ridge, licking under his jaw, then trailing down his throat to skim across the muscles of his chest. Seth's fingers traced delicate patterns with ghost-like touches across the insides of his thighs, then headed up his sides.

_Yami?_

Seth shifted down farther, his lips trailing softly across his ribs, then across the plane of his stomach. When he reached Seto's navel, he swirled his tongue around and slid his hands soothingly over the skin that quivered there. Seto felt his muscles quiver then go limp and a sigh escaped him in a whisper soft moan, as his mind took a brief siesta.

_Jo woke me up like this one morning._

Seto dragged his mind halfway back to reality. _Jo?_

Seth hummed softly, his fingers stroking teasingly over Seto's belly. _He and E'on were playing._

Seto managed a small _hmmm_ as he all but melted into the bed. His mind was trying to tell him something, but Seth's fingers and tongue distracted him. He felt Seth shift farther down, tracing a path down to the soft brown curls that nestled between his legs. He shivered a second as the air touched his damp skin, then stilled as Seth's hand covered the area in a caress.

Seth's mouth slipped past his growing erection and trailed down his thigh. Seto shifted, his fingers stopped twining into his yami's hair and tugged the chestnut locks in a silent protest. Seth nipped softly, and continued to retrace the patterns his fingers had created earlier. Seto growled at him, and received another nip.

_Tease._

Seth bit him a little harder and sat back, looking at him with shadow filled eyes. His fingers trailing down Seto's body to brush feather light over the tops of his thighs. Seto looked up at him, trying to figure out what was passing through his yami's mind. Seth watched him a second mere then got up and walked out the door.

Seto pushed himself up onto his elbows and glared towards where his dark had disappeared to then shook his head with a disgusted snort. _Forgot that… When cornered, distract…Damn… Me and my defenses…_

He quickly got up and followed after. _You know you aren't getting away with that._ He walked along the hall towards the study where Seth liked to sit. _I know that trick._

Seth was sitting in his chair watching a candle that cast him into golden shadows. Seto stopped in the doorway, looking at him, but Seth didn't shift his gaze.

"No." Seth's voice was barely louder than the candle's flame as it flickered.

"No what?" Seto stepped into the room.

Seth settled back into the chair and closed his eyes. Seto carefully walked over to him, keeping as quiet as possible. When he reached Seth's side, he touched his dark's arm. Seth sighed and looked up at him. Seto shifted back as a swirl of emotion eddied around him. Sadness. Doubt. Pain. Anger. Fear.

"If you won't talk to me, who are you going to talk to?" Seto settled against the edge of the desk watching Seth.

Seth reached over and pulled him down to sit on his lap. _My father was a priest. He always stood next to the pharaoh and served him loyally._ He nuzzled against Seto's throat.

_And?_ Seto lifted his hands to wind them through Seth's hair.

_I always wanted to be like him. It was what I worked for all my life._ Seth kissed the hollow under Seto's ear. _The training to be a priest is hard. To be the High Priest, it is even harder, but I wanted to inherit his position, so I did what it took._ He made an agitated move, as if to get up.

Seto shifted his legs till he straddled his yami, keeping him pinned in place. _What happened?_

_He went insane._ Seth leaned his head against Seto's collar bone with a tired mental sigh. _He slaughtered Bakura's home village to create the Millennium items, then later tried to get me to usurp the pharaoh's throne._

Seto frowned. _Why are you upset now?_

_He is responsible for what happened to Jonouchi. He is the one that threatened Mokuba. He is the one who banished you to the Shadows and attacked you last night._ Seth circled his arms around Seto's waist. _He is angry at me, so he is trying to destroy you._

Seto was quite a few seconds, then shrugged. _You have changed your career goals haven't you?_ Seto tugged softly at Seth's hair trying to get him to look up at him.

Seth pulled him closer keeping his head down. _I understand him too well. For a time, we were the same. He could be me. I could be him._

_And I could be Gozuburo._ Seto shrugged. _But **I** chose not to be. He taught me, but I decide what to do with it._

_It's not that simple._ Seth slipped his fingers up Seto's backbone sending little shivers through his light's body.

Seto hummed softly. _I said the same thing when Mokuba told me that, but it's something to think about._

Seth slid his hands down Seto's back and leaned back in the chair, watching his light with sad eyes. _It may make no difference in the end._

Seto sat back, looking at his dark. _What do you mean?_

_My father had no intention of becoming a monster. _Seth shifted again, setting his hands on Seto's hips and giving him a slight push.

Seto refused to move. _You think that you…_

Seth narrowed his eyes then stood up. Seto slid down to stand in front of him, one hand still threaded through his hair. Seth tossed his head, trying to dislodge Seto's grip. When he wasn't released, he reached back and put his hand over Seto's, pressing down to loosen his fingers. Seto didn't resist, taking the alternate strategy of catching Seth's hand and pulling it towards him.

Seth shook his head. "Let go, Seto."

"No." Seto shifted his weight and shoved, pushing Seth abruptly back into the chair. "We're not done yet."

Seth growled softly, and moved to stand back up, but Seto settled himself back straddling Seth's lap. He tipped his head, pressing their foreheads together, their eyes looking back into each others, and their breath ghosting into the other's breath. Seth's hands came up to push him back again, but Seto wrapped his legs around the legs of the chair, holding them both in place.

"Seto…" Seth's voice was little more than a growled breath.

Seto pressed forward, sealing Seth's mouth with a kiss. One of his hands came up to hold Seth's head in place as the other slipped down to gently tug at the hand Seth had on his hip. Seth gave another growl, refusing to let Seto deepen the kiss, and keeping his hand almost bruisingly tight.

Seto growled back and shifted his hand. _Two can play the same game._ He gave up on the kiss and moved to the curve of Seth's neck as his hand came over to stroke over Seth's stomach. Seth arched his head back, turning in mute protest as his body quivered. Seto smiled against his darkling's skin, licking a swirl under Seth's ear. _But this time I'm not going to be the one who's distracted._

Seth made one last effort to push him away, then with a sigh, closed his eyes and settled back into the chair, his hands falling to his sides. _Fine._

When Seto finally found himself again, they were laying curled on the floor by the desk. Seth was curled around him, his face pressed against the back of Seto's neck and his arms cradling him. Seto moved carefully, expecting a sharp stab of pain to remind him not to play uke without proper preparation, but was slightly surprised when he felt nothing. He turned slowly and looked at Seth. He watched him sleep a moment considering letting himself rest, then with a determined frown slipped out of Seth's arms and got to his feet. He checked himself carefully, while he was a bit of a mess, he felt fine. With a shrug he went back to the bedroom, grabbed a blanket from the bed, and went back to spread it over Seth. When he was done, he wound his way down the maze and out to the hall between their soul rooms.

Mokuba was sitting at the cheap desk that overlooked the alleyway, poking at a pile of papers. When he sat up, his brother swung around to look at him.

"Seth?"

"No. It's me…" He started, only to be cut off as he got tackled back by a black haired cannon ball.

"Big Brother, are you alright?"

"I'm fine. What's happened?"

* * *

That was the hardest lemon I've ever written. They're both so dominant that it was hard to figure out who would be seme and who would be uke. But it's done. Not the greatest lemon ever, but IT'S DONE!!! And yes, finally the mystery baddie is revealed. Those who guessed Akenaden get virtual chocolate chip cookies! 


	27. Awakenings

**AN: **I'm alive. Honest I am. I really am having trouble saying goodbye to my fic. I know I have to end it, **but I don't want too**. _authoress and her group of muses wail piteously_ I will though. Just a couple more chapters and all will be settled. I cringe though at what you guys are going to think about the next chapter. I'll brace you now… someone, who is not the bad guy, isn't going to make it. I'll do my best to leave open a possible return… but no matter how I try to weasel out of it, it has to be done or the whole thing falls apart.

**Psyche**

Chapter Twenty Seven: Awakenings

* * *

OCs

**Ahmose: (Egyptian for: The moon is born)** Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on**: Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame**: Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon**: The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara**: The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori**: **(Japanese for: Ice)** The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr**: The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be.He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt.

**Shimo**: **(Japanese for: Frost)** The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai**: Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

* * *

**Jame**

Jame cooed lovingly at the computer and its list of names she'd compiled of likely secretaries. She had, in her boss's absence been hard at work. _Hard at work replacing myself._ Taking a page from her boss's repertoire of sneakiness, and adding to his now publicized return from the dead, or the kidnapped, she had actually convinced a group of highly qualified men and women that Kaiba had found god and was now a breeze to work for. Admittedly, once they actually had to deal with him they'd find out just how creative she had been with reality, but by then she'd be sunning herself in Aruba.

_Not that he actually is hard to work for. _Jame flipped lightly through her day runner for a date and time to set up interviews then idly cross checked it against the computer's scheduling system. She frowned when the computer system showed a five minute discrepancy between the two schedules. _A computer bug? Or is my day runner off?_

Kado dropped a print out on her table and went to the small kitchenette of the RV to get some coffee. "Did the boss say when he'd be back?"

Still sulking at the computer, Jame shrugged. "No. He just came in grabbed the paperwork and left."

"Are you still meeting with the government regulators tomorrow?" Kado set a cup down on the corner of her table. "I need to assign a security detail."

"At three." Jame dug through the computer files looking for a reason for the horrid wrongness that was lurking around destroying her schedule, not noticing she was slightly hyperventilating. _"Five minutes! I can't…Who the hell put that there?! _

The computer, like the intelligent genius it was, had faithfully recorded that someone –_who will have to be hunted down and tortured_- had messed with her carefully crafted files, adding a thirty minute psychiatric appointment for her to focus on her problems of... _I am not obsessive compulsive and I AM NOT IN DENIAL!_

Kado turned around and squeezed his way out of what the other surviving members of the home office staff had nicknamed the Kiaba Mobile, and once he was safe outside, smirked. Tanaka sitting with the accounting department, working on the payroll system, saw the expression and arched an eyebrow. Kada made a small thumbs-up gesture then, prudently, went to make the rounds of the vicinity, as Jame's shriek of furry erupted behind his back.

"Who messed with my schedule?! You are so dead! What if I'd been LATE!?!"

Kado's voice whispered back. "Obsessive."

The shriek, the product of weeks of stress, continued, "Damn it! I am **so** going to get fired. Just you all wait! As soon as the boss is back I am unemployed. Do you hear me?!! Aruba here I come!"

Tanaka smiled. "And that would be the denial part."

**Seth**

Seth kept his eyes closed. Seto was getting dressed and, he could sense, casting suspicious glances in his direction. He concentrated on keeping his breathing deep and even, feigning sleep. His light was up to something, and he was curious as to what it was. He had a few guesses. The main one focused around the twined subjects of revenge and Akenaden. Seth wasn't foolish enough to believe that his oh-so-peaceable hikari had been so distracted that he hadn't neatly filed away the information that Akenaden was responsible for the attacks against his family. Neither did he believe that Seto had wanted nothing more from him than sex and to give a bit of comfort.

No. Seto had wanted him out of the way, and what better way to do that then to have sex and then sneak out during the post sex nap? His light was up to something. What had he said? _But this time I'm not going to be the one who's distracted._ Well, Seth had to admit, Seto had been distracting. And now he was being sneaky.

As soon as the door closed behind his light, Seth sat up. It was his turn to be sneaky. He shrugged into his clothes while looking around the room for that scroll. The one he now kept well hidden from his light. Two could play at being sneaky, and his sneakiness was sure to blow a hole right in the middle of his light's plotting.

_Ah, there it is._ He scooped it up and flicked his hair back out of his face. He opened it and glanced over the spell. He'd been working on it. Not that it had been a bad spell initially, only a bit wasteful, and as Seto had so brilliantly shown, a bit dangerous in the wrong conditions.

He quickly checked outside the door for any lingering hikaris. Not that he expected any. Seto had probably rushed off to his own soulroom the second the door had closed behind him. He hadn't taken over the body. That was still as he'd left it, sleeping on the bed. Seto had gone to scheme in the privacy of his own room.

Seth walked down the hall, through the twisting labyrinth of his soul, and slipped into the Shadow Realm. He didn't bother trying to find a special place, like his pharaoh and the others had. He supposed he'd find one later. All he really needed right now was a clear moment and a bit of space.

He looked down at the scroll, reviewed it once more then nodded. Happily, he wouldn't have to sing the thing.

"Between the darkness and the light

Banished, I call.

Hear me.

Answer me.

Release me.

Faith leads me forward

Grant me the light

Fear holds me back

Free me from the dark

Let me leave the night

Grant me the dawn

I was born to the light

Hear me, mother

I long for the light

Answer me, father

I am trapped in the dark

Release me

Soft swirls of power flared around him, twisting into mobius strips through the air in glowing bands of blue and gold.

Time hold me

Flesh enfold me

Let me emerge

Free of the night

The bands wove together and wrapped themselves around him in a blanket of light. Seth hissed slightly, half in pain and half in ecstasy as the bands pressed themselves into his skin. Seth looked down at his arm, seeing a ghost pattern of runes etching themselves into him. Sparks of light flared out, sparkling in the gloom of the Shadow. Seth arched in pain and pleasure then vanished.

Mokuba, sitting at the desk, slogging his way through a stack of paperwork startled as a huge flash of blue light flared behind him. _Oh no, not again. _

He turned and found himself staring at a slightly surprised version of his brother. This Seto though was a bit taller, tanner, and broader across the shoulders and chest. Sun streaked chestnut hair was longer than Seto usually wore his, and this Seto was wearing a tunic and pants.

"That wasn't too hard." Seth grinned.

Mokuba glanced over to the bed where Seto was still sleeping. "Seth?"

**Seto**

Seto lounged in his soulroom, the one place he guessed that Seth could not overhear his plans and interfere. He could be wrong about that, but since his darkling hadn't come pounding on the door demanding explanations, he felt safe enough to let his mind linger on what he was going to do with Akenaden. No one, no one got away with hurting Mokuba and Jonouchi.

The problem was however, how. How was he going to take out a five thousand year old spirit, and keep his interfering yami out of the way. He absolutely sure that his self appointed nanny was going to object to his being anywhere around Akenaden, much less strangling him with Pegasus's gaudy tie.

So first problem, Seth. What to do with one overprotective figure of his imagination? That might require a bit of research, which required him talking to one of the other hikaris. Yugi? Well the short duelist was probably the best choice. He was intelligent and his alterego probably shared quite a few secrets with him. However, the problem there was that Yugi was far too close to his yami, and Yami was far too close to Seth. One word in Yami's ear and Seto was sure it would go straight to Seth.

Okay, so that left Ryou and Malik. Malik and his dark were freaks, and not too bright. The whole take-over-Domino plan just reeked of idiocy. Sure taking over a few kid's minds and scaring the crap out of a few more was ego boosting…for the dimwitted. It would have been a short boost though, any number of options easily popped into mind on how to stop the whole thing: yawning in Malik's face and blandly telling him that using unauthorized cards was against the tournament rules, and congratulations he was disqualified –after all he hadn't used the Obelisk card in a tournament duel, only in a side duel with already disqualified contestants; hunting down Yami Yugi and having their duel in the privacy of a back alley, where half brained duelists wouldn't have yowled bad advice in his ears –and that had been tempting, very tempting. There had been a good reason why he set the last duels where he had; burning the Obelisk card –Besides, the card had always given him an odd feeling, as if he would be better off not only just incinerating it, but tossing the ashes into the ocean; or just plain calling the cops and saying that one of the tournament contestants was wandering around kidnapping other contestants and possibly giving them some form of hallucinogen to disqualify the competition, and just sit back to watch as Malik got harassed by increasingly irritated and heavily armed officials. When Malik was finally hauled off to a government lab for "examination," he could have made a few statements about the sanctity of gaming, offered a few conciliatory prizes to the "victims of this horrible example of gamesmanship," magnanimously allowed the tournament to continue to "prove that one ignorant individual could not destroy the honor of dueling," and spent months raking in the good PR. –He was rather sad he hadn't done that. Maybe next time…

That left Ryou. His yami, though crazier that Malik's was far more intelligent, and if his sudden reappearance even after Yami Yugi considered him gone for good was any indication, quite skilled at magic. He might have a way to keep Seth from meddling in his overdue payback.

Check. Problem needed to be further investigated for more information.

Second problem, how to destroy a Millennium Item. Hmmm. He'd have to eliminate all the yamis. None of them were so stupid as to let that information out. Shadi? No, too loyal. That also eliminated Isis. Solomon? No, not likely. Pegasus? Taken over. Hmmm. That left one option; research the subject, which of course meant spending time doing it, which of course left him open for Seth to stick his nose into his plotting. Unless, of course, he got someone else to do it for him… Now, who? Kaiba Corp was a bit low on personnel, and what employees he did have were busy puzzling together the remnants of his business –_Damn Seth for not letting me go to the office!-_ Still, he could hire an outside researcher. There were any number of highly qualified, under employed archaeologists, anthropologists, and other scholars who would love a well paying job.

Check. Problem needed outsourcing for research.

Last problem, the one of his own making, what was he going to tell Jo about him and Seth. He didn't exactly regret his actions. He had wanted… well a lot of things. He had wanted Seth to stop shutting him out, pushing him aside as if he was nothing, no one. He had wanted to prove that he wasn't fragile, that he wouldn't break. He had wanted Seth. That was the core of the problem. He wanted Seth. It wasn't logical. It wasn't explainable. He had just wanted Seth, and he had no idea how to tell Jonouchi what he'd done.

He cringed at the thought of Jo's reaction. Yes, he'd wanted Seth, but he couldn't live without Jo and he'd just betrayed Jo's trust. Even if it hadn't been truly physical, he'd still… _He'll leave for good this time. He won't accept apologies. He'll pack up and be out of the house –if I still had one- well, out of my life anyway. It's not like I have anything to offer anymore. My business is in ruins, my house is gone, and if Mr. Motou hadn't been generous, Mokie and I would be living in an RV that doubles as an office. No, I just handed Jo a paddle to flee the sinking ship._

Last problem. Unresolvable.

**Ryou and Bakura**

The first things he was aware of were small things: the softness of polar fleece against the side of his face, the murmur of a song playing so softly he couldn't quite hear the words, the soothing stroke of someone's hand through his hair. He drifted pleasantly feeling warm and lazy. He sleepily tried to put a name to the song. The tune was familiar, but the lyrics kept escaping him.

_Bakura? What is the name of that song?_

He felt the hand that had been sliding through his hair pause.

_Ryou?_

He felt something shift behind his head and realized he was laying on someone's lap. He stretched out a little bit, and let his mind drift down the connection he had with his yami, only getting a muzzy, half awake, puzzled nudge back.

_Ryou?_

He hummed a soft response to his drowsing other, and opened his eyes. He wasn't surprised to find that it had been Bakura who had been his pillow. He was a bit startled to find that he was sleeping on Yugi's couch, and that it was bright and afternoon.

"Ahhhgggg! I'm going to be late to school!" He sat up and looked around in a panic for his books.

Bakura, wrenched from his dreams as Ryou thrashed around in his search, tried to catch his hikari before Ryou fell off the couch. "Ryou! It's not…"

"I have a paper due. This is awful." Ryou tumbled to the floor. "What am I ever going to tell the teacher? I'll fail. I'll end up going to one of **those** schools."

Yugi, Malik, Anzu, Honda, and Mai peeked their heads out of the kitchen to see Ryou hurriedly searching around the couch while Bakura tried to catch his frantic light.

"I'll end up working as a janitor at the dog pound." Ryou realized his backpack wasn't near the couch, dodged his not entirely awake dark, and stumbled to his feet. "This is awful!"

"It's also Sunday," Mai called out watching Bakura finally catch hold of his light.

Ryou stopped, blinking at his friends. "Oh."

Bakura fell back onto the couch with a groan, pulling Ryou down with him. "Stupid light, can't even remember what day it is."

"As if you knew yourself." A voice commented from the stairs.

Bakura glanced over and scowled at Seth. "Shut it priest." He narrowed his eyes a moment, then smirked. "Get tired of sharing a body with your light?"

Seth only shrugged and walked down the rest of the stairs, Mokuba tagging at his heels, looking at a scroll.

"Is the tomb robber awake?" Yami's voice floated down after his priest.

"Yes, my pharaoh." Seth called back.

Ryou watched them all, frowning. "What…?"

He looked around trying to figure out what was going on. Last he remembered, he, Yugi, and Malik had been watching movies. Then… he'd been angry at Bakura… then…

Yami and Malik came down the stairs. He felt Bakura shift, then wince. Wince? His yami?

"Bakura?" Ryou twisted around to look at his yami. He started worrying when he felt Bakura's muscles jerk again and his dark's breath hissed slightly.

_What?_

_What's wrong? _Ryou knew instantly he was going to be lied to as Bakura's eyes turned shifty.

_Nothing. Now get off. I've got better things to do then sit here playing pillow._

Ryou moved, settling on the couch next to his dark. When Bakura gave him a warning glower, he arched his eyebrows innocently, and Bakura went stalking out of the living room, up the stairs, growling at nothing. He then looked over to Yugi, who mouthed, later. Nodding, Ryou stood up, frowning slightly at the burning sensation down his leg. It felt like he'd gotten a sunburn. He bent down and pulled his pant leg up, inspecting the angry red skin on the back of his calf.

"Are you hungry Ryou?" Anzu smiled, "We've got snacks."

Ryou nodded, straightening his pant leg. "That would be nice."

Yami, Malik and Seth took over the couch as he walked into the kitchen.

"What happened?"

"You want the long version or the short version?" Honda sat back down at the table where school books, papers, pencils, a half a plate of cookies, and cups of soda were scattered.

Ryou gratefully snatched up a couple of cookies, "Short please."

"You went nutty when Bakura got stabbed. Pegasus went nutty and he's got the Eye. All hell broke loose in Yugi's living room. We all got some rest. Bakura sat on the couch petting you. Seth showed up. The yamis are trying to be sneaky." Malik plopped into a chair, making a waving airily. "And that's about it."

"Bakura got stabbed?" Ryou remembered the wince.

"Seems okay." Malik took a gulp of orange soda, then burped.

_Bakura? Are you hurt?_

He could feel his yami getting shifty. _What makes you think that?_

Ryou sighed. That answered that question.

**Seto**

He half expected to have his yami stop him, demanding that he go rest, but there was not protest when he opened his eyes and looked around the small bedroom he was sharing with Mokuba and Jonouchi. He looked around, wondering were Jo was. Hadn't Seth mentioned that Jo was sleeping?

He stood up and walked out the door, stretching and working kinks out of his muscles. He gave his arm an annoyed look as it tingled in a burny warning that it didn't like being stretched. He stopped by Yugi's bedroom door and tapped lightly. When there was no answer, he nudged the door open and looked in.

Jo was laying on a pile of futons on the floor next to Yugi's bed. He was sprawled, one arm flung over his head, the other trailing off the edge of the mats. A bandage was wrapped loosely around his head was sliding loose, almost covering one eye. A goofy grin was spread across his face, and he was snoring softly, occasionally giggling slightly in his sleep.

Seto came over and smiled down at him. _You're nearly indestructible, aren't you love?_ He sat down next to the futons and stroked the shaggy blond hair out of Jo's face. _Thank you. I know I haven't repaid you well for what you did, but I heard you._ He leaned forward and brushed a kiss against Jo's cheek. _Thank you._

Jo mumbled something and twitched.

"Jo?" Seto sat back, watching as gold tipped eyelashes fluttered.

"G'way 'Renny. Iss the weeken'." Jo shifted away, curling into a sleepy ball under the blankets.

Seto blinked. "Jo. Jo wake up."

"Se'o, juss five more 'kay? Won' be laa' prom'sss." Jo pulled the blankets up over his head, in full hibernation mode.

"Jo…" Seto reached out to wake him up then stopped, not sure if he should or shouldn't. He wasn't sure why, -it seemed almost natural to do, but at the same time…-but he reached out to Seth. _Jo's waking up._

Oddly, the voice didn't seem to come from within, but…from downstairs? _I'm coming. How is he acting?_

_He's talking in his sleep._ Seto frowned at himself. Why was he telling Seth? Why did he feel the need to check in? _What the hell is going on?_

"Everyone talks to themselves at some point." Seth stepped through the door, a half concealed smile on his face.

Seto shot to his feet, staring at his yami, all his carefully constructed lies and delusions shattering around his feet. Seth was standing in front of him. He wasn't just a ghost, a figment of his imagination, someone, or something that could still be partially denied, but flesh, blood, and breath. "Seth?"

"Yes?" Seth looked politly…innocently…inquiring. The smirk that Seto was sure was lurking around somewhere carefully hidden. He was dressed now in what Seto could identify as a pair of pants that he was sure he'd seen on Marik, and an old green and grey flannel shirt, probably from Mr. Motou's closet.

"When did you get a body?" Seto tried yanking his mind back together

"Oh, just about…" he looked off as if he was thinking about something. "An hour ago."

Seto nodded and wondered if he'd be convicted of murder or suicide if he killed his darkness. _Well, I wanted to know how to destroy a five thousand year old spirit…Practice might help…._

Jo sighed and rolled over again, shifting around, trying to find a comfortable spot. He pulled the blankets with him, wadding himself up in them and burying his face against the pillow. "Shu' up al'eady. 'm tryin' to sleep." He mumbled.

Seth let the smirk out from hiding and stepped up to Seto. "You heard him. Now be quiet or you'll wake him up."

Seto hissed, "Thanks for the warning."

Seth grinned, leaned forward, and kissed his angry light. "We'll play later then you can yell as much as you want."

Seto didn't miss the hint, and tried to bite his yami's tongue as it playfully tapped against his lips. "You're louder."

"Not likely."

"I heard you."

"I heard you."

"Uh, hey Seto? When did you get a twin?"

Seto and Seth both looked over to where Jonouchi was sitting cross-legged on the futons looking at them confused.

"Jo, you're talking." Seto stepped away from Seth. "Are you alright?"

Jo smiled at him, "Sure. Feel great. And I talk a lot, Seto."

Seth stepped closer to Jonouchi, frowning, and half wishing E'on was there. The little dragon could probably explain why he had a feeling that something was off. "Jonouchi."

Jo looked unsure, turning to Seto. "Uh? Seto?"

"Not surprising really." Yami commented from the doorway. "It could be much worse."

Seth nodded thoughtfully, as he stepped aside, letting Yugi, Malik, Ryou, Honda, Mai, and Anzu crowd past him. Yami caught his eye and nodded silently down the stairs. Seth looked at where his light was now kneeling in front of his blond lover, smiling a relieved smile, then stepped out the hall and followed his pharaoh down the stairs, through the living room, through the kitchen, down another set of stairs, through the small shop, and out onto the street. Malik and Bakura were already there, lounging against the side of the building.

"Good distraction." Bakura pulled a pair of sunglasses out of his back pocket and slid them over his eyes.

Yami shrugged. "Providence provides."

"Better then us all sneaking out saying we need to pick up pizza." Malik straightened and started walking down the street.

"We will hear about it though." Seth glanced ruefully back at the building they'd just left.

Yami followed after Marik, heading towards the heart of Domino City. "They'll get over it."

Seth nodded and followed with Bakura falling in step next to him. "True, but it will be a loud "getting over it".

**

* * *

**

Wheee! Done. I'll try to get this finished quick, so don't be surprised if the next chapter shows up shortly.


	28. Traps

AN: Nearly done. I'm working on the final bits now and depending on how much I love or hate them is how long it will take to get them to you. I'm not going to do the review responses till the end of the story. I appreciate all of you, and thank you for your reviews, but I want to get this over with quick before I start whimpering again about this being the end of the story. I've loved my story and watched it grow for years. It's hard to say bye, but it also has to be done before the plot drags out into a true nightmare like those endless quest books that keep going, and going, and going, till you want to strangle the author while screaming, "Just get the the fckin end already! They've slogged through every bog, killed every monster, and did all the team bonding moments. PLEASE LET IT END BEFORE THE BAD GUY DIES OF OLD AGE!"

**Psyche**

**Chapter Twenty Eight: Traps**

* * *

**OCs**

**Ahmose:** (Egyptian for: The moon is born) Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on:** Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame:** Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon:** The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara:** The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori:** (Japanese for: Ice) The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr:** The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be. He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt.

**Shimo:** (Japanese for: Frost) The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai:** Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

* * *

**Jonouchi**

It was like dueling. Those first few heady seconds when your deck is in front of you, and everything is a possibility. That's what it had been like waking up to see Kiaba standing having a hissing, dragony conversation with himself.

"We'll play later then you can yell as much as you want."

"You're louder."

"Not likely."

He recognized the tone in Kaiba's voice. He'd heard it before directed at himself. Half aroused, half angry, all focused. That tone usually ended up with them sprawled on the nearest stable, or even unstable, surface fucking like bunnies in spring. However, it had also been too strange, surreal almost, everything glassy and full of possibilities that could either flash into a million bright stars, or shatter into cutting shards.

"I heard you."

"I heard you."

Enough. No more. Time to pick up the first card and see what it was. The duel had to start sometime. He sat up, and interrupted. "Uh, hey, Seto. When did you get a twin?"

Kaiba spun around so quick Jo was surprised he didn't get neck stain. The look on both their faces said that the first card was a dud. Kiaba looked shocked, guilty, but relieved. The twin looked concerned. When Kaiba came closer, he realized he'd drawn another disaster card. Like Dark Sword, a great card, but arming a kurribo with it? Not good.

"Jo, you're talking. Are you alright?" Kiaba came closer, looking at him anxiously.

"Sure. Feel great. And I talk a lot, Seto." Why it was important, or even noteworthy that he was talking escaped him, but it seemed important to Kaiba. All of which meant that the next card was also not the best. A lot like coming up with a two kurribos in a row. Still, the best thing to do was to trust that the cards would pull you through. Two kurribos used right could do some pretty kick-ass things.

That's when he noticed that Kaiba's twin was coming closer, and the twin looked worried.

"Jonouchi."

Okay, now the opponent was openly smirking. The twin hadn't said his name as a question, as if asking who he was. It had been a statement. Even though this Kiaba's voice was accented and slightly deeper, he could still hear the meaning in it. The voice caressed over his name, just the way Kaiba's voice did, turning a handful of syllables into a nearly physical touch. That voice said, as plain as if he'd come out and explained it in detail, with visual aids, and special effects, I know you, and your skin, your bones, your blood all know me.

The hand was a bust. All unusable magics and weak monsters whose only use was to sacrifice themselves for the greater good. Hardly the best way to start a duel.

He looked toward where Kaiba was now kneeling in front of him. "Uh? Seto?"

A duelist doesn't give up. The cards could be fickle, they tested their owners, but if you were true they could also lead you to victory. He'd just finished with the pep talk when Yami leaned in and arched one elegant eyebrow at him.

"Not surprising really. It could be much worse."

And that's when he realized that he had a hand full of crap and he was across the dueling field facing someone like Yami. Shit, he was toast.

The next few minutes, full of happy relieved faces of his friends cemented the fact in. Something, somewhere was completely off. Still, he was willing to let the cards fall as they would and play his hand. Kaiba's clone disappeared quickly enough, off to do whatever Kiaba clones did in their free time, when not making Kaiba yell, purr darkly, and jump guiltily.

The next turn didn't improve much. He felt sticky, sun burned, and he had a bandage falling in his eyes. Worse, he was sticky, sun burned, with a bandage falling into his eyes at Yugi's. When he wiggled around demanding clean clothes, Kiaba had pulled him into the guest room next door, where scattered around the room was a jumble of Mokuba's things, a few of Kaiba's things, and some of his things, as if they'd been staying there awhile.

It was the plant that made him realize that his opponent had just slapped down The Dark Magician and had just torn a huge hole through his life points. It wasn't a normal plant. It looked drunk, it sang old hippie tunes, and it brought back memories of sitting in a garden watching a young, slim teen stroking its leaves, coaxing it to open and sing.

"Jo?" Kaiba was looking at him as if he was afraid of something.

"Hey, where did we get the plant?" Bluff. Hadn't Grandpa said to bluff for time?

Kaiba looked at the plant then looked warily back at Jonouchi. "A gift."

"One freaky gift." He grabbed a pair of what looked to be acceptably clean jeans out of a pile of clothes and headed to the bathroom, prolonging the bluff as long as he could. His reflection showed him that his little kurribos just died a piteous death and his opponent was smirking in satisfaction. He looked… different. Someone had beaten the hell out of him, which wasn't so shocking. He'd gotten into enough fights to shrug off the lump on the side of his head, the bruises, and the assorted cuts that always remained after the main event was over. It was the hair that told him about the wide, self satisfied grin on his opponents face. No one, ever, got long hair over night. It took months, even years to grow from shoulder length to brushing the middle of your back.

"Oh shit."

A Kiaba twin…Yami Seto? Or who was it, the one from the past…Seth. That wasn't good. A yami and a hikari. How much closer could one get. The hissed conversation with Kaiba's dark, aroused purr lacing through it. The answering purr in the yami's voice.

"_We'll play later then you can yell as much as you want."_

Yes. How much closer could one get?

"_Jonouchi."_

The possessiveness whispering through the voice of the dark skinned, sun streaked Kaiba twin. The duel was heading south fast. A caress of sound.

"_Jo, enough."_

_His hands slipping across stomach muscles as someone who was not Seto quivered beneath his touch, his teeth nipping lightly, teasing the others lips open. The sinful, mischievous curl of pleasure forming in his stomach as he slid his fingers tauntingly around this not-Seto's navel, causing the not-Seto to moan a low needy sound in the back of his throat, and yield to his hands. The feel of his own mouth pressing down hungrily into the compliant brunet's mouth as the not-Seto's hands raised to caress him. His own lips trailing downward as his hand wrapped around the silky firm flesh of the not-Seto's …_

He turned away, brushing the shower curtain aside and hopping into the tub. As he turned, he noticed the bright red burn mark that traced down his shoulder and spine. A sun burn? He'd been out sunning, with long hair, gotten into a fight, and came home to Yugi's house where he was now living with Kaiba, Mokuba, a Rainbow Flower, and Kaiba's yami. And it was noteworthy that he could talk?

Okay. His hand was in the gutter, his life points were zeroing down, and his opponent was grinning like Marik on a sugar high. Could it get worse?

Jonouchi groaned as he stepped in the shower and Ryou called, "Jo, I think Bakura used all the hot water. Sorry."

He was living at Yugi's house with Bakura. Next Malik would ask him not to use Marik's shampoo, or perhaps Marik was … wait a moment…. When did the yamis have the ability to wander around by themselves?

The game was over. He was officially fubared.

**Jame**

"So long Kaiba Mobile." Jame settled into a nice plumply cushioned chair.

She'd managed to transfer the surviving staff of Kaiba Corp into one of the manufacturing plants on the edge of the city. It had only involved a few minor shifts, a little jog through the disorganized jungle that passed as governmental regulations, and a small rearrangement of personnel. All in all, not bad. Kado wasn't wandering around her table feeding his ever growing caffeine addiction. Tanaka was happy with his new, non-sofa office, and accounting was actually back online and working out the last of the bugs in the books. The interviews with prospective employees were scheduled for tomorrow. The hazmat teams were well on their way to clearing out the rubble of Kaiba Corp. Architects were already submitting plans for the new Kaiba Corp Tower, and now all that was needed was Kaiba to show up and give the final approval to everything.

"Now… who keeps adding psych. appointments to my schedule?" Jame looked down at her computer.

So far, there had been three appointments that had somehow wormed their way into her carefully created schedule. Each one with the same doctor, whose secretary had no idea who made those appointments, and each was for treating obsessive-compulsive disorder and denial. Due to the last minute addition of those appointments, she had to rearrange nearly the whole week.

She huffed softly and started creating a list of possible candidates. Tink was her top contender. He had already gotten into his thick skull that she was too organized, and he had the computer knowledge to hack her files. Second, Drover and Pease might have banded together and added those appointments. The problem there was that neither one of them had the skills to do….

The telephone shrilled at her, interrupting the organizing of her revenge list.

"Kaiba Corporation. This is Jame, how can I assist you." She always liked that line. Her direct orders from Kaiba was to be as un-assisting as she could possibly be. She even had permission to be annoying and rude if the person didn't take the brush-off.

A falsely cheerful voice chirped in her ear. "Hello, I'm Mrs. Ito. I was asked to call you in regards to your real estate inquiry."

_Oh. The sales person._ She'd contacted one of the better real estate agencies in the area to deal with the small problem her boss's house being turned into a scrap heap. She wanted a list of possible residences available the second he stepped into the office. She'd even sandwiched the viewings in between her psychiatrist visit and an interview with the new research and development liaison.

"Yes." Jame reached into the file box that sat at her feet for the appropriate file. "Did you get the specifications?"

"Oh, yes. I have to say, they are quite extensive." The real estate agent gushed. "I should warn you that for all this you are looking at a house well over the three million dollar range."

"I'm sure Mr. Kaiba won't mind." Jame flipped to the specifications pages. "Do you have any properties that fit the criteria?"

"Just a few. There's a lovely house that opened up on the right end of the bay. It has a terrific view of the ocean from nearly every room. It also has an indoor pool with a connected jaccuzi, fully landscaped on twelve acres of property, a huge patio area that connects in a series of decks down the side of a rocky outcropping for a truly spectacular view, it is fully fenced with top of the line security features, and it has …"

Jame listened to the sales babble, nodding absently as she reviewed the file. When the woman paused for breath, Jame jumped in. "That sounds nice. Please arrange a preliminary showing of that and any other houses between two and five on Thursday."

"Perfect. I'll make the arrangements." The agent enthused. "Will Mr. Kaiba be there?"

Jame could actually see the commission dancing in front of the woman's eyes. "No. This is only a preliminary viewing. I'll then submit the best ones to Mr. Kaiba to view himself."

"Wonderful." Ahh… the sound of the dancing commissions taking a time out.

Jame eyed the phone disbelievingly. "Fine. Be on time. I will meet you in front of your office at two o'clock sharp. Do not be late."

"Till then!" The agent cheerfully enthused.

Jame hung up, made a few notations in the file, filed it carefully away in the box and reviewed her schedule. The furniture people would be arriving at ten to deliver the file cabinets. She still needed to have maintenance finish sound proofing Kaiba's office at one o'clock, and the painters should be done by the end of the day. His furniture was scheduled in to arrive tomorrow morning at eight, and the interior decorator would be putting the finishing touches on everything at eleven. At noon, she was scheduled to meet with the international lawyers about the other destroyed Kaiba Corp towers, and at two thirty she had her first meeting with the psychiatrist. Luckily, that would only be thirty minutes, so by three fifteen she would be back in time to review the press releases about Kaiba's return from the dead, and contact Industrial Illusions about the preview to the next series of Duel Monster Cards.

She nodded. Everything was in order.

Tanaka, standing outside her door with Kado shook his head with a small smile. "I can't believe she didn't just cancel."

Kado grinned. "It's in the schedule, therefore, it's sacred." He snickered as he walked away. "Obsessive-compulsive."

**Yamis**

"Trust the fruit cake to have a building like this." Bakura stared up at the ornately gothic building with its gargoyles, flying buttresses, stain glass windows, and an overly cheerful Funny Bunny animated statue waving at pedestrians on the front step leading up to the gothic monstrosity.

Yami grimaced, but kept walking up the stairs. They had decided to try the direct approach. Akenaden had to know they were coming, so why try to be sneaky about it. Better to conserve strength to face Akenaden and use their tricks in more subtle ways.

Seth trailed along behind him eyeing the statue. "What is that?"

"Funny Bunny." Marik stood in front of the statue grinning at it. "It's a kiddie program."

"Pegasus is a loony." Bakura grumped, scanning the area.

Everything was peaceful and serene. A small flock of pigeons was cooing and strutting on the sidewalk. The trees that swayed gracefully from elegant, flower-filled gardens cast shifting patches of bright sun and light shade across merrily splashing fountains. A few pedestrians passed by, intent on conversations about lunch and coworkers. Cars whooshed past fluttering small leaves and petals of the plants.

The only odd thing was that no one was going in or out of the building. As they stepped inside, the lobby was empty. The receptionist's desk was empty. The small guard station was abandoned. The only noise was from the soft exhale of the air conditioning system.

"Who wants to just grab the elevator?" Malik motioned to where the lift was open, waiting to take someone up.

Bakura shook his head. "And do half his work for him?"

Yami also shook his head, and Seth frowned at the elevator's small interior. He missed his light. Seto could have explained things like elevators and Funny Bunny to him. The others walked over to another door and cautiously looked inside.

Yami looked back at the elevator then stepped into the stairwell, looking upwards at the thousands of steps leading upwards. "Just how many floors does this have?"

"Forty two." Bakura slogged ahead starting up the stairs. "And his office is, of course, on the forty second floor."

Yami shook his head and started his climb with Seth at his heels and Marik bringing up the rear. "Why do they always want their offices on the top floor? Wouldn't the bottom floor be better?"

"And miss the view of looking down on the competitors?" Marik plodded behind him. "Never."

Bakura ignored them as they continued upwards, looking for traps. He was sure they were set someplace, and the stairs were the perfect place with their dim lighting, confined space, and blind curves. The only questions were where were they placed, and what kind of trap was set. If it were him, he'd do something along the lines of a lurking monster backed up with a magic pit trap. Distract with the monster and kill with the trap. Still there were other more direct ways. A timed trap set to activate a few seconds or moments after it was tripped to get everyone inside the kill zone. That might be a good one. Or perhaps a seal set on the floor…

Seth was actually relieved they were on the stairs. He hadn't liked the looks of that elevator, and while the stairs with their grill work showing drops of hundreds of feet weren't the most comforting thing, he liked having his feet set on something solid if the unexpected exploded around them. He kept an eye on the pharaoh, half listening to him bicker good naturedly with Marik about building size making up for physical endowments. He'd often had the same idea when looking at some of the more massive temples and statues that he'd grown up around. He remembered on old High Priest of the previous pharaoh who'd built a funerary temple that had taken over an entire hillside with statues, gardens, columns, and inscribed walls that had towered nearly up to the heavens. He knew for a fact, after living in the same temple compound with the man and sharing the same bathing pools, he had been woefully unimpressive.

After trudging upwards for a small eternity, Bakura stopped, frowning at a cement slab of a landing they were approaching.

"Problem." Bakura slunk forward carefully. "There is something there."

"Hmmm. Not much of a power signature." Yami hummed softly, looking carefully around at the walls and stairs they were standing on.

Marik brushed by so he could stand with Bakura trying to get a look at the floor of the landing without coming closer. "Could be a seal."

Seth considered. "Yes, that would fit the feel of it, but it's a little odd that a seal is detectable when it's unactivated."

"Could a secretary of some other office worker tripped it?" Marik advanced another step and peered at the top of the landing.

Nothing was laying there. Nothing showed on the floor or the walls. Marik looked up towards the stairway hang above it. Nothing.

"We can't just stay here looking at the walls." Bakura growled, prowling forward.

Marik caught his shoulder. "Wait a second. What if we go find a pedestrian and toss the pedestrian onto the landing? There were a few of them down below."

Bakura narrowed his eyes, looking at Marik, "You want to carry some schmuck up thirty flights of stairs?"

"Errr. No." Marik shook his head. "How about a secretary?"

"No." Yami came up to peer over the edge of the landing. "One of us should go."

"I vote for him." Bakura gave Marik a shove forward. "He's expendable."

"I'll go." Seth stepped around them. "I remember how to deal with these. It's simple enough."

Yami nodded and Seth stepped up to the landing. A small buzzing sound filled the air, a whiff of something burning, and Seth shook his head making a small gesture with his hand.

"An annoyance." Seth looked down at the faint traces of the seal under his feet. "It wasn't set correctly. That's why we could detect it."

"He really isn't doing well in the spell department." Marik ambled up and stood next to Seth looking at the seal. "He really flubbed up the Dark Magic Attack, now he can't get a simple paralysis seal to work."

The trudging continued. More stairs with the only highlight was Marik finding a nice mechanical pencil that he twirled around his fingers and occasionally used to write obscene messages on the walls. More trudging.

"I swear to all the gods, I will personally destroy every Stairmaster I ever come across." Yami groaned as he paused on the thirty fifth floor to rub his thighs.

Bakura and Marik collapsed on the steps stretching their legs out in front of them with relieved sighs. Seth thumped himself down on the floor of the landing with a tired slump. The stairs were never ending. They just kept going, and going, never to stop.

"Tell me again about this elevator thing." Seth looked over to Yami.

Bakura snorted, "You get in the box and cables haul the box up to the top with a pulley system. When you get to the correct place the door opens."

Seth leaned back. "Cables are easy to cut."

Yami nodded. "Foreword."

Marik bounced to his feet and started up the stairs. "Personally, I always liked the idea of gassing people in an elevator shaft. The screams, the helpless pounding on the elevator door, it seems so… cozy."

Bakura glared at his back. "Remind me why we brought him along."

"Cannon fodder." Yami stretched up to his toes in one last attempt to work the kinks out of his legs.

Bakura grunted and started up the stairs. "Good thinking."

Seth waited till Yami was heading up to follow. "Are they always like this?"

Yami nodded. "Just go with it, and if by any chance they actually do try to kill each other step aside and hope they take each other out."

Seth nodded continuing the weary trudging. It wasn't until Marik started singing 1000 Bottle of Beer on the Wall, that he really took his pharaoh's words to heart. By the time there was only 450 bottle of beer, he was sure that if Bakura didn't try to kill Marik, he'd do it. He was just contemplating if one could drown a person with a thousand bottles of beer when Marik suddenly stopped.

He was standing a few steps short of the next landing. "I can see the seal this time."

"Damn. Only two more flights to go." Bakura grumped, taking the opportunity to stretch out his legs.

Seth stepped around him and Yami. "I'll take care of it."

Marik shook his head, "Nah, I've got it. It looks like a Nephaine seal. It doesn't even look like it was done right." He sighed. "I should give classes… the quality of evil doing today is really pathetic. No pride. No craftsmanship."

Seth shrugged and sat down to rest. "Fine."

Yami sprawled across a few steps to rest. "I wonder why only seals? I would have used traps."

Bakura shrugged and sprawled across the steps wondering if any vending machines had beer, "No imagination." He cocked his thumb to where Marik was working out the kinks in his legs before tackling the seal. "I'm with him. This guy's rather pathetic." He smirked. "Then again he was one of your priests…hmmm….your uncle too. Yep. Inbred and stupid…."

Yami growled, eyeing the thief. "So speaks the man who got his ass kicked by my inbred, stupid priests."

Marik gave one last stretch and stepped up the final few steps and looked down at the seal on the floor. _What kind of moron uses light colored chalk for a trap seal. Better to use grey. It blends in better._ He stepped to the edge and raised his hand over it, beginning the spell to banish the seal. It was simple enough. The Seal of Nephaine was a basic confusion spell, just as long as he didn't step into the seal itself, it wouldn't affect him.

Bakura yawned and made a tired, half-hearted, insulting gesture at Yami, "Almost to the top. Any idea of what his favorite spells are?"

Yami settled back onto the stairs after returning the gesture. "He used to favor your trick, sealing souls in inanimate objects."

Seth shook his head. "He tended to use indirect attacks and subtle…"

A huge flash of crimson light flared through the stairwell, a power surge of magic slamming into the three and flinging them back into the wall of the lower landing. A loud shrieking wail twisted around them. Yami managed to drag himself back to his feet and look up to where Marik was now surrounded by a wall of red and yellow lights swirling around him.

"Shit! Marik!" Bakura stumbled up the stairs. "Double seals, one inside the other."

Seth grabbed Yami as the pharaoh leapt forward. "No. Don't touch it!"

Marik was standing frozen with one hand extended outward. His blue eyes looking at nothing. The red light spiraled around him in flashes of blood and gold. As they watched, Marik slowly started to fade.

Yami fought free of Seth, reaching out to Marik's dissipating form. "Marik!"

"What the fuck is it?" Bakura yelled, diving to the floor as a swirl of gold and red orbs flared outwards towards them.

Seth ducked as another surge of power blew through the stairwell, grabbing his pharaoh and flattening him beneath him. The wailing reached deafening levels then abruptly stopped. A clatter of metal hitting concrete chimed down the stairs. The three yamis cautiously looked up and then cautiously crept towards the landing. There was no sign of Marik, only the Millennium Rod lying on the landing gleaming faintly.

"Fuck." Bakura looked down at the seal now burned into the cement. "Where the hell is he?"

Seth looked down at the seal. "Reintegration."

"What?" Bakura stepped back. "You mean he's…"

"Back to being part of Malik." Yami nodded then turned to Seth. "Is the seal still usable?"

Seth shook his head and stepped forward. "No. It's probably the reason the other seal didn't work, or why there isn't any traps. This type of seal draws a tremendous amount of power to set. To leave it open ended, to be used multiple times, would take more power than even a dozen well trained priests could manage. Akenaden simply didn't have the power to do more than this one spell."

"What about Marik? We're now one short." Bakura looked down at the Millennium Rod, then shrugged and bent to pick it up.

The Rod skittered out of his grasp with a metallic his of metal scraping on concrete. It rolled to a stop at Seth's feet, waiting like a patient puppy for its master to notice it. Seth gave it a disgusted scowl and scooped it up, grimacing as it slipped its way into his mind with a satisfied hum. "We'll make do."

Yami stepped forward and headed up the last of the stairs. "Akenaden has a lot to answer for. Let's not keep him waiting. We can see what can be done for Marik when Akenaden is out of the way."

Seth followed with Bakura grumbling behind him up the last two flights. They cautiously opened the door to the forty second floor. Like the lobby, there was no one present. The secretaries were gone. The office doors were all open and vacant. Only the door to the executive suite was closed.

"He's got to be in there." Bakura stalked foreword.

**Kaiba and Jonouchi**

Jonouchi looked suspiciously at the coffee Honda handed him. "You made this?"

"Shut up and just drink it would you." Honda thumped down on the couch and clicked the TV on then clicked it off as Yugi, Ryou, Malik, and Kaiba turned to glare at him. "Sorry, sorry."

Yugi turned back to the other hikaris. "Okay, so chaining them to our beds won't work. Anyone else have a good idea?"

"Ryou's suggestion of dumping the Millennium Items into the Shadow Realm sounds good." Malik sipped his cola and glared off into space. "I'm sure Yuai would do you a favor and keep them there for awhile."

Kaiba snorted, "That's great for you, but mine is roving free without an item. I prefer dumping the lot of them on an island and let them replay _Castaway_. If I feel forgiving, I'll even throw in the soccer ball."

The hikaris thought it over. Honda eyed them carefully from across the room. Anzu, Mai and Mokuba were hiding in the kitchen. Ever since Malik realized that his dark was missing, all the hikaris had become rather…. Evil. Honda drank his coffee and picked up his discarded history text.

"I wouldn't want to be Yami when he gets back." Jo muttered, watching Yugi viciously bite into a carrot stick, then chew it up, each clench of his jaws making his teeth grind ferociously together to decimate the tiny vegetable.

Honda eyed Ryou, who was playing with a pencil, stabbing it into a pad of paper as if murdering it, over and over again. "I suddenly feel bad for Bakura too."

Jonouchi considered Kaiba. His lover was being rather restrained, in a homicidal, if-I-move-too-much-I might-kill-someone way. He puzzled it over then looked away. It wasn't any of his business. A yami's business was their hikaris and a hikari's business was their yamis. There wasn't room for anyone else. _Except of course if you've been playing mattress inspector with the yami._

Honda flipped open his text and started to read. Jo watched him for awhile, glanced over to where the others were scheming over their sodas, then got up to go look at the flower again. It gave him an odd feeling every time he looked at it. The flower wasn't dangerous. Kaiba had shown him how to feed the plant by feeding its pot bits of toast, sending both into a contented, twisted rendition of _Georgie Girl_. The flower wasn't much of anything except strange, but every time he looked at it, he would remember something: sitting at a window looking over a garden, a slender, black haired, red eyed teen grinning at him; a tree with burning leaves in the center of a pond; sitting on a step with not-Seto's arms around him, resting against the dark's chest.

He sat down at the desk that the flower sat on and stroked its leaves like he remembered the teen doing. The flower burbled a second then started warbling something like _Que Sera Sera_. He watched it sway back and forth in time with the tune.

"Jo?" Kaiba stood at the door watching.

"Hey, Kaiba." Jo smiled breezily at him. "You know, this really is a great flower."

Kaiba nodded and came in to sit on the bed. "What's wrong?"

"Wrong?" Jo felt himself jump guiltily. "What could be wrong?" _Oh, and by any chance do you know if I fucked your yami? And how ticked off are you if I did?_ He looked out the window with avid interest as if the entire English fleet was sailing through the small back ally.

Kaiba gave him a look. A look that plainly said his point had just been proven. Jo squirmed, watching Kaiba's reflection in the window. He hated worrying Kaiba over nothing. So what if he couldn't remember… well, apparently the last few years to go by how long his hair had grown. Though it was odd that Mokuba hadn't aged in the least…

"Why don't you start with the last thing you remember." Kaiba prodded.

"Remember…Uhhhh, what's that got to do with…" Jo cringed as Kaiba gave him another look. This one said nice try.

"Okay, so my memory's a bit spotty." Jo mumbled, looking everywhere but at Kaiba. _Oh look, someone dropped a paper clip._

"Do you remember…" Kaiba stopped then shook his head. "Okay, maybe it would be better if you did that on your own."

The look on Kaiba's face now said there's something you should know, but I'm not going to tell you. Jo considered the possibilities: a strange flower, the yamis having bodies, living in Yugi's house with Bakura and Marik, Yami Seto, all the yamis running off leaving their hikaris almost murderously worried, the tense expressions on everyone's faces, the broken furniture in the Motou's living room.

"Jo, about Seth…" Kaiba started.

_Okay, brace yourself…_ Jo glanced at Kaiba's face. He wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a really bad thing that Kaiba looked…guilty. Kaiba could make most anything into being his fault. Jo sleeping with Yami Seth could easily have been twisted around to most any form for Kaiba to torture himself with. _Computers? Kiaba's good. Dueling? Not bad. Running a multi-national corporation? He's got potential. Finding something to tear himself apart with? Absolute genius._

"I had sex with him." Kiaba bowed his head, looking down at the floor, like a small child confessing they'd broken the goldfish bowl and put Mr. Fish in the toilet to live then accidently flushed.

Jonouchi waited. There had to be more. There was the whole part of him giving…Seth?.. a hand job. But Kaiba didn't look up, and he didn't say anything. "And…" He prompted.

"I'm sorry, Jo." Kiaba's blue eyes darted up to look at him uncertainly then flashed away, hiding.

"Uhhmmm…okay…." Jo nodded. "Did I know about this, ya know, before?"

Kaiba shook his head.

"Okay. Here's another question." Jonouchi watched Kaiba brace himself. "Did I sleep with him?"

Kaiba stopped looking intently at the rug and frowned up at Jo. "No. Not that I know of." His eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Why?"

"Hehe." Jo scratched the back of his head. "Just wondering."

Kaiba looked even more suspicious. "Why were you wondering?"

Jo inspected the drapes. _One minute he's sorry. The next I'm the one squirming._ "Just curious."

Kaiba stepped forward. "Jo?" He paused and then shook his head. "He said you…"

"He said what?" Jonouchi glanced over to where Kiaba was standing looking thoughtfully at him.

"He said you and E'on were playing one day. Do you remember that?" Kaiba reached out, touching his arm.

"Sorta." Jo mumbled.

Kaiba was quiet a moment. "Jo, talk to me."

Jonouchi looked up from where he had been doing a minute inspection of the drapes. "I remember…some stuff. It's just kinda jumbled."

"I'm sorry, about…Seth, but I can't say…"

"Seto…do you still…?" He forced himself to meet Kaiba's eyes. "Are we still…together?"

Kaiba reached out, his hand touching Jo's shoulder hesitantly. "Yes. As long as you want me."

Jo looked up. "Hey." He laughed softly, pulling Kaiba towards him. "That's going to be a long, long time." He touched his forehead to Kaiba's, his lips hovering a breath from Kaiba's. "One question though."

Kaiba jerked uneasily under his hands, his eyelashes fluttering nervously against his own. "What?"

"Just how good was he?"

* * *

Authoress and her tired muses dodge behind flame proof bomb shelter waving small peace flags. It was necessary! I love Marik. He's one of my favorite characters to write, but it had to be done… I'm still working on a way to bring him back. After all, where would the hikaris go when they need a plan to keep their yamis in line? 


	29. Endings

Psyche

Chapter Twenty Six: Endings

* * *

**OCs**

**Ahmose:** (Egyptian for: The moon is born) Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on:** Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame:** Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon:** The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara:** The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori:** (Japanese for: Ice) The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr:** The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be. He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt.

**Shimo:** (Japanese for: Frost) The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai:** Yugi's girlfriend, sort of..., one of three rulers of the Shadow Realm. Though she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

**Kaiba**

Hell, Kaiba realized quite young, broke loose in a variety of ways. Sometimes it crept up on you, one horrible footstep at a time. The first step could be nothing more ominous than your mother sleeping in late and having to go to the doctor's to "just check to make sure." Sometimes hell would smile at you, a cold, calculating smile that said, "Sell yourself to me, boy. I'll take care of your brother. I'll never hurt him. You'll do that for me" Or sometimes it just moved straight to the main event.

Malik was laying on the floor writhing and screaming, his head slamming back, his spine arching up, as he shrieked long insane howls of agony. Yugi was desperately trying to hold the blond down, while Ryou raced around clearing the area of things Malik could thrash into and hurt himself. The TV chimed a merry song about antiperspirant in the background from where the lights had been watching WWW Wrestling. Popcorn and soda were now scattered across the floor being kicked and trampled by worried feet.

"Ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod." Ryou pulled the coffee table out of the way as Malik started convulsing, his arms and legs wildly flailing around.

Kaiba grabbed Mokuba as he ran into the room with Mai and Anzu. "Go back to the kitchen."

Mokuba just stood frozen in his brother's arms staring.

Mai pulled Yugi away. "Don't try to restrain him. He could hurt you."

"But…" Yugi watched helplessly as Malik slammed himself against the side of the couch.

"She's right." Kaiba pulled Mokuba back till the couch blocked the screaming blond from view then turned to look in his brothers shocked eyes. "Mokie, go back to the kitchen. Find some towels, gather ice, and make some tea."

_That should keep him busy. _Mokuba mutely nodded, only half understanding as Kaiba gave him a push in the right direction. Kaiba looked around seeing Mai, Anzu, Ryou , and Yugi standing in a helpless circle around Malik. _Where's Honda? He's usually the first to jump…_

That's when he realized that he'd been distracted and hell wasn't through with him yet. Honda was kneeling on the stairs in front of where Jonouchi sat, forcing his friend's head down between his knees. The other blond was dead pale, shaking, with his eyes looking around the room with glassy, unfocused terror.

_And now he chooses to get his memory back_. Kaiba sprinted for the stairs, leaving Mai to deal with Malik and the others.

"Hey, it's alright." Honda awkwardly stroked Jo's hair as he kept the blond bent forward. "Just take deep breaths."

Kaiba crouched next to him. "He remembered."

Honda nodded. "Came down the stairs and …wham."

"Go help Mai." Kaiba reached out, sliding his hands over Jo's shoulders. "Keep Mokuba out of it." He shifted closer as Honda left. "Jo, it's fine. It's all over. Just take it easy."

"He…he… Seto…he…" Jonouchi panted shivering and shaking his head. "It hurt…Seto, it hurt."

"It's all over." Kaiba ran his fingers through Jo's hair. "He's dead. He can't hurt you."

Down below, the sounds of Malik's shrieks and thrashing were dying down into gasps and quieter cries of pain. The others were chittering amongst themselves, and Mai was trying to restore some order to the scene. Kaiba was relieved for no other reason than it was one less hellish thing he had to worry about, especially when Jo needed him.

"He kept screaming." Jo shook. "Night, day… he'd just scream."

"Shhhhh." Kaiba pulled him closer, cradling Jo's head against him, still running his fingers soothingly through his hair. "You're home now. You're safe."

Jo wrapped his arms around Kaiba's waist, hiding his face against his shoulder, while down bellow everyone scampered around in a panic, helplessly watching Malik curl into a tight ball wailing in loss and pain.

**Yamis**

Yami stood looking up the hall towards Pegasus's office. The place was, in his opinion, a nightmare with purple carpets, suits of armor lining the walls and sharing space with ornate tables with flowing lacy tablecloths, bowls of huge flowers, large gilt framed pictures of cartoon characters, and intricately woven rugs in yellow, orange, red, and green. The thief was stomping up the hallway angrily scanning the floor, walls and doors that surrounded them with a look of complete disgust on his face.

"Marik aside," Seth murmured in his ear. "This is too easy."

Yami nodded. "Uncle is far too crafty to let us off so easy." He looked at Pegasus's door suspiciously, then shook his head. "What is he planning?"

Seth sighed absently stroking his fingers along the Rod. "I should have guessed the seals. He did that before when I was trying to arrest him." He paused thoughtfully. "The reintegration seal is new, but before he used Nephaine and Negleta seals."

Yami eyed the thief as Bakura paused crouching down to inspect the floor. "Bakura will be able to deal with either of those, and Akenaden would be a fool to think otherwise."

"Father was never a fool." Seth frowned. "He's got something else in mind."

"Hey, pharaoh." Bakura still was inspecting the floor carefully. "Take a look."

Yami eyed the far door one last time, then sauntered casually down the hall with Seth at his side. "What is it?"

On Pegasus's cheerfully demented carpet a small smudge of charcoal smeared its way under a lacy table. A tiny, nearly unnoticeable whisper of power came from the hidden space. An almost identical smudge trailed under the foot of the French suit of armor next to it.

"Animation?" Yami carefully touched the edge of one of the smudges, getting a small tingle of corruptness from it.

"Figures." Bakura looked irritably at the armor with its filigrees and swirls. "Pegasus must be rubbing off on him."

"Meaning?" Seth eyed the metal monstrosity wondering at the sanity of anyone who could possibly wear such a thing.

"It's an old cliché," Yami looked sourly at the armor, "to have animated armor attack people and start clumsily swinging a sword around. There's probably something like a animated hand or skull under that table to bite our ankles."

"Could he have used someone's soul to do the animation?" Seth fingered the Rod thoughtfully. "These halls should have people in them, maybe he used them."

"One way to find out." Bakura straightened and kicked the armor.

It clanked slowly to life, stumbled a few paces forward, tripped and fell to the floor shattering into dozens of pieces. The draping cloth of the table twitched and a small whirring sound revved up into a buzz as a shinning globe whirled out from under the table and started spinning around the hall. Bakura yelped as the globe smashed into his foot.

"Fuckin'… that son of a…" Bakura leapt out of the way as it zoomed by him again. "It's a high tech ankle biter."

Yami danced away as it caromed in his direction, tumbling into Seth who was hopping aside to spare his own feet. As they tumbled into a heap, the globe glittered and shot towards them, smacking into Yami's leg. Yami hissed and shoved his priest off him, allowing the globe to zip in to smack the back of Seth's head with a dull thunk. The priest only made a small grunt as he went limp on the floor.

"Shit." Bakura grabbed one of the leg pieces of the armor and swung it at the globe. "Two down."

The globe swirled around and flashed toward Seth's head again. Bakura swung, but it veered aside, spun around and hit Seth's chest. Yami winced as he heard a dull crack as Seth's ribs broke.

"It's picking up power as it moves." Yami grabbed another piece of armor and smacked the globe away as it swerved to attack Seth again. A sharp electric tingle shot up his arm, causing him to drop the metal armor with a startled hiss. "It's got an electrical charge."

Bakura hummed, his eyes slanting to where a bowl of flowers nodded peacefully on a nearby table. As the sphere whirled back around to attack, he grabbed the bowl and flung the contents onto it. The globe whirled in place, sending sparks out then slowed. In a few seconds, it lay quiet on the purple rug.

Yami growled, eyeing his hand and his now unconscious priest, as ne knelt down. "Seth?"

The brunet didn't twitch as Yami carefully slipped his hand to the spot where the globe had hit his head. The pharaoh could feel the bruise forming already. He tapped his finger gently against Seth's closed eye. "Seth, wake up. Can you hear me?"

"And?" Bakura looked suspiciously around, still jittery from adrenaline.

"He's out." Yami pulled his hand back, grimacing. He sighed, gently stroking Seth's hair then stood. "Let's go. We have to deal with Akenaden."

"You're going to leave him there?" Bakura arched an eyebrow, a small evil grin slipping onto his lips. "Loyal, pharaoh, really loyal."

Yami glared back. "Move thief." He stepped past Bakura scanning the ground. "If we don't stop Akenaden, he'll kill Seth anyway. Now back to work."

**Hikaris**

Ryou quickly trotted into the kitchen, smiled distractedly at where Mokuba was stuffing ice into plastic bags for Malik's many bruises, and dropped a pile of dirty paper towels into the trash. He grabbed a roll of clean ones and was back out into the living room in seconds. Malik was now laying under a blanket, still thrashing slightly and making small pained sounds. Mai and Honda were kneeling next to him just in case he started thrashing again. Yugi and Anzu were hurridly cleaning everything up and moving things farther out of Malik's reach. Kaiba and Jonouchi were still huddled on the steps, the blond clinging to his lover, and Ryou could guess, crying. He handed the paper towels to Anzu and quickly returned to the kitchen.

Mokuba handed him the ice bags with a kitchen towel wrapped around them. "Here. " He nodded towards the phone. "I also called Shadi. He's on his way."

Ryou nodded and darted back out. Handing the ice to Mai, he looked at Malik and worried. _That could be me. Something, something horrible happened to Marik and…_ He reached out, as he'd tried ever since he noticed that his yami was missing, and tried to find Bakura. _Yami, please…please tell me you're alright. Please._ Nothing. Malik cried out softly, shuddering under the blanket. _Please tell me you're safe. Please. PLEASE._

Yugi was wiping up soda, his eyes wide and terrified. Ryou didn't have to ask to know he was desperately trying to get his own yami to answer him, and he wasn't having any success. Wherever they were, their darks did not want to be disturbed. Which, when added to Malik's sudden attack, amounted to being with or very near Akenaden. He gathered up the paper towels that had already been used, and went to throw them out in the kitchen again.

Mokuba was standing at the sink, filling each ice tray one at a time and setting them aside. A kettle of water was heating on the stove, and a pot of tea stood ready to steep.

"Has anyone checked Duke, Grandpa and Isis?" Mokuba moved to the stove as a long stream of steam blew out of the kettle in a whistle.

Ryou shook his head, shoved the dirty paper towels into the trash with the others and darted back out the door. _Please be safe. Please be safe._

Kaiba was now urging Jo to his feet and pulling the blond gently up the stairs. Honda was scooping Malik up and settling him on the couch as Mai hovered nearby arranging a pillow for Malik with a blanket tossed over her shoulder. Anzu had finished picking up the splinters of glass from where Malik had shattered a tumbler of soda and was now carefully wrapping them in an old newspaper. Yugi had another stack of paper towels soaked with soda and popcorn waiting for him.

"Has anyone checked on Grandpa and Isis?" Ryou parroted, barely noticing the words coming out of his mouth.

"I'll go." Anzu set the newspaper containing the glass on the pile of paper towels. "Yugi, can you finish this?"

Yugi nodded. His eyes still only half focused on his surroundings. He was functioning on automatic, wiping up the mess, while begging his yami and whatever fates were listening that his yami wouldn't get hurt.

Anzu darted up the stairs passing Kaiba, who was still slowly leading a shaking Jonouchi towards their bedroom. Grandpa and Isis were in Grandpa's bedroom. Grandpa laying on the bed with Isis settled on a futon to one side on one side of the bed and Duke on another futon on the other side. No one looked like they had moved, but Anzu quickly checked, straightening Isis's blanket and brushing Duke's hair away from his pale face.

She bent over and kissed Solomon's cheek, "We really need you, Grandpa. Wake up soon."

She stepped quietly out of the room, closing the door softly behind her. As soon as the door clicked shut, Grandpa, Duke, and Isis sat up, looking blankly at the door with dull eyes.

**Bakura and Yami**

The hall, which in reality really wasn't all that long, seemed to stretch out forever as the two darks paced slowly up the hall looking for small clues to indicate another trap. Seth lay sprawled near the deactivated remains of the spinning globe behind them. Finally, they both stood in front of the last gaudy rug that led to Pegasus's office. It was a nightmarish design of Pegasus's full scrawled in loopy, florid swirls of yellow set amidst hundreds of Funny Bunny faces.

"Can't we let Akenaden have him?" Bakura looked disgustedly down at a winking Funny Bunny face. "How bad can it be?"

Yami's lips twisted in distaste. "Bad. Let's just do this and get out of this place before we start singing the Funny Bunny theme song."

"I'm safe." Bakura smirked stepping forward. "I don't know it."

Yami shook his head with a small sarcastic grin, "Too bad. Malik could have taught it to you. Makes me miss him…"

The explostion of light knocked Yami back down the hall, nearly to where Seth lay. He lifted his head, disbelieving as a familiar column of crimson light surrounded the startled thief.

"Bakura!"

**Hikaris**

Ryou suddenly went tense, his eyes flashing open wide as something, somewhere ripped deep inside him. _Yami!_

And he was running. Even as Honda and Mai turned and watched the slight, white haired teen slip down to the floor in a boneless heap, Ryou ran. The door to his yami's soulroom was brushed by in a half second, the dark swirl of streets no living person had walked through for centuries were a blur, city walls with creaking gates, the sleepy creak of the Nile as it rolled in its ancient bed, tall palm trees waving against the night sky flashed by. All that was important was he had to be somewhere…somewhere ahead…now.

Sand caught and pulled at his feet as the desert spread out in front of him, but he didn't pause. He had to be there now! Bakura needed him there. Wind shifted around him as he raced, sending tiny pricks of pain as grains of sand hit him. The moon gleamed down between high flung clouds, but there was one place its light didn't hit. One place that was too dark, too shadowy. Ryou pushed, going faster. That was the place. Even as something else ripped, tearing into his soul, he flung himself forward into the one place Bakura had never allowed him to go in his soulroom.

He staggered a few steps forward and collapsed to his knees on the blasted earth. Green lightening flashed across the sky. Ahead of him on a slight rise huge crevices gouged through the earth and black slugs crawled oozily around. _Yami! Where?_ He looked around, trying to find a clue. This was the place. Every particle of his soul said to be here, but what was he…

Crimson light sizzled down around him. He quickly jumped to his feet, dodging the light, and running into the boulders. The light followed, shattering the boulders, sending chunks of rock and pieces of slug raining down around him as he twisted and turned, keeping one step ahead of the light like a skilled thief dodging through a crowd. He leapt a crevice and darted through another group of boulders, the light following him. He jumped another, looking down. It had no bottom, only slugs patiently ascending the slick sides in greasy slow motion. Green lightening flashed again, as more boulders were destroyed. The light nipped at his heels, causing him to gasp and dart off to the side beneath a trio of boulders that looked almost like a bridge.

**Bakura and Yami**

Bakura hissed in agony as the light crushed down on him. It felt like the spell he'd used to get a body, but only a hundred times worse. He could dimly see Yami crawling up the hall towards him, trying to keep low as gold and red flashes of power cascaded down the hall.

_Damn, so stupid! The idiot priest said it took a lot of power to set the seals. We gave him plenty of time to recover and set two… Fuck. _He arched as the light clenched around him tearing into him, tearing him apart to put him back into Ryou_ … Ryou. My light. I'm so sorry._ The light strengthened its hold, and he felt his body shred away, only his soul shivered waiting for the last blow. But the light hesitated, its grip loosening.

Far away he felt it, Ryou. It was after Ryou, but his little light was fighting back, running. He wasn't going to let the light catch him, and the crimson light couldn't do anything until it had Ryou. _Yes! You can do it, tenshi. Be strong. You are me, I am you. No one can catch us in a race. Run!_

He struggled against the light. If Ryou could do this, so could he. He twisted, his soul shifting against the bands of power that surrounded him, looking for a weakness. It hurt, as if he was rolling on thousands of razor sharp blades, but he had to do this. Ryou gave him this time, and he wasn't going to let the light destroy him, or his hikari. He thrashed a moment and felt it, a slight give. He shoved, past the agony, past the burn of power. It didn't matter. It hardly counted. After thousands of years of being locked in the Ring, what was this? Nothing. The red light shifted to gold, the gold shifted to white, then blackness.

He woke up sprawled on hard rocky soil with the stench of something burning in his nose. Something was laying on top of him.

"I… was… so… worried…" Ryou's voice whispered in breathless pants.

Bakura smiled up at the sky as green lightening flashed across it. "What was there to worry about?" He lifted his hand, stroking through his light's sweat damp hair. "I knew you could do it, tenshi."

**Apartment… We're running out of hikaris…**

Ryou was now laying on the floor next to Malik. A soft blanket spread over him and a pillow plumped under his head. Yugi was now sitting in a chair staring off at nothing. Anzu was hovering nearby while Mai carefully checked Ryou for injuries. Honda was hauling another futon down the stairs to make Ryou more comfortable, and Mokuba was standing next to Yugi trying to get the semi-comatose light to drink some tea. When Yugi didn't so much as blink, Mokuba turned and walked up the stairs to check on his brother and Jonouchi.

"I got sent to the kitchen to make ice and tea, and someone is going to drink it." He muttered as he stomped up the steps.

Kaiba and Jonouchi were laying on the bed. Jo was curled against Kaiba's side, clinging and shaking. Kaiba's arms were around him as he whispered reassurances into the blonds ear. Mokuba shuffled at the door uncertainly then looked down at the cup of tea in his hands.

"Anyone want some tea?" He tried hard to keep the small trace of sarcasms out of his voice. He really did. Jo was having a nervous breakdown. Malik was still crying in pain. Ryou was unconscious and he…had tea.

Kaiba looked up. "Put it over there." He nodded toward the desk. "Are you okay?"

Mokuba nodded as he set the cup down. "Fine. Ryou just collapsed."

Jo lifted his head to look at him. "Is he…?" His voice sounded rough.

Mokuba shrugged. "I don't know. He just fell over. Yugi isn't talking, so we can't ask him." He looked at his brother. "I don't suppose Seth?"

"No." Kaiba closed his eyes a moment. "I can't even feel him right now."

"Oh."

Jo struggled to sit up, rubbing a shaking hand over his face. He turned to his lover, trying to summon enough strength to stand. "We should go help."

"Mai's got it covered." Kaiba sat up, his arm still circling Jo's waist. "And Yami is the only one who can truly help Yugi."

Mokuba turned to the door. "Well, I guess I'll be in the kitchen then, pretending to be useful."

"Mokie…"

"Nah-uh." Mokuba pointed at Kaiba. "It can't be both ways. I can't be safe in the kitchen and feel like I'm being useful at the same time."

"Whatever is going on, I don't want you in the middle of it." Kaiba frowned, trying a brotherly glare as well.

Mokuba ignored both. "That doesn't mean that I can't take care of my friends."

"I didn't ask you to. I just don't want you…"

Jo slumped back to the bed, causing Kaiba to look at him worriedly. "I'm out of this. You two deal with it."

Mokuba snorted. "There's nothing to deal with."

There was a soft thump from downstairs.

"Probably Yugi falling over." Mokuba shook his head. "Which means back to the kitchen for ice and…"

Mai screamed. Something crashed to the ground and Honda let out a yell. Kaiba and Jonouchi shot out of bed and raced through the door, shoving Mokuba behind them and closing him in the room.

Mokuba glared at the door then went over and sat at the desk, picking up the tea and drinking it. "I'll just stay here and maybe make the bed."

**Yami**

Bakura was gone. He wasn't sure if he'd been reintegrated, but the thief was gone. He looked back at his still unconscious priest, then turned to face the door. He inspected it carefully, but found no seals or traps, so he pushed it open and cautiously stepped through.

"Welcome. Welcome." Pegasus was sitting behind his expansive desk. A elegant Tiffany lamp decorated one corner of it, while a Funny Bunny paperweight sat on top of a pile of papers on the other corner.

Pegasus was grinning. "So it's down to you and me."

Yami nodded, half wishing he'd taken the time to pull Seth into one of the empty offices. _No, no point. Akenaden would just hunt him down._ "Why are you doing this, Uncle? Egypt, the one we loved, is long gone. The financial dealings of this world are only minutely interesting. Power isn't what it used to be. Why do this?"

"Power is power." The wide insane grin Pegasus had worn disappeared. "You never understood that."

"I understood. I wasn't interested." Yami glanced down at the floor then stepped forward. "Power can't be used the way it was back then. There are treaties, alliances, politics, balances. Things aren't as straight forward."

"Oh, those things were there before. There are a few new twists, but it doesn't matter." Pegasus shrugged, his eyes cold. "Given the right circumstances, things can return the way they were."

Yami didn't particularly love the sound of that. He scanned the area, spotting a few traps. "What circumstances?"

"I know how to open the barrier between this world and the Shadow Realm." Pegasus sat back in his chair. "That might be a good start. Letting Shadow beasts destroy a continent or two could bring things around."

_And severely tick off the rulers of the Shadows. But you don't know about them, do you?_ Yami gave the room one last look. He'd spotted the traps and the one Nephaine seal on the floor. He could guess that another of those spinning globes was hiding under a shawl draped artfully over a delicately carved chair. It was time to begin.

"Uncle, I can't let you do that." Yami stepped forward, skirting the edge of the seal.

"You really have no choice." Pegasus cocked his head at him. "I would have thought that someone who styles himself as the King of Games would have noticed that he was placed in checkmate."

"Checkmate?" Yami snorted. "Hardly."

"Oh, you don't believe me?" The grin stretching across Pegasus's face was hauntingly familiar. He'd seen it on his uncle's face just before he had died. "Tell me then, where is your hikari? Hmmm?"

**Apartment**

Anzu was crumpled in the corner of the livingroom, her brown hair falling over her face, as Isis blinked slowly down at her then turned away to join the others. Grandpa had tackled Honda to the floor and the two of them were struggling, Honda desperately trying to keep the other's hands off his throat. Mai circled the couch trying to keep away from Duke who was holding a small table lamp in his hand like a club. Kaiba raced down the stairs with Jonouchi at his heals. The only still person was Yugi who was sitting like a small statue in one of the chairs.

Jo leapt forward, yanking him off the chair. "Yug, come on. Get it together."

Kaiba lunged for Duke, bringing the other brunet down with a crash. Duke squirmed, trying to turn and hit Kiaba with the lamp, but Mai jumped forward and caught his arm, pinning it to the floor. The lamp fell to the floor as Duke struggled, getting one leg free and kicking back to catch Kaiba in the groin, causing him to loosen his grip. Duke braced himself and then slammed his shoulder forward into Mai's stomach, sending her back into the couch.

"They don't stay down!" Mai gasped and rolled to the side as Duke regained his feet. "We hit Isis. She should have been out, but she got back up."

Jo, seeing Solomon get through Honda's defenses and wrap his hands around his friend's throat, gave Yugi one more shove down and tackled the older man from behind. "Gramps, it's Honda. Look, it's Honda."

Honda wiggled pulling one hand off, trying to gasp for breath. Jo pulled at the other. Solomon looked back with dark, unseeing eyes, and used his now free arm to slam it back into Jonouchi's stomach. The blond cried out and fell to the side, giving the older man time to grab onto Honda again with both hands.

Isis stood for a moment, then with a blank nod, walked over to where Duke was struggling against both Mai and Kaiba and picked up the lamp he'd dropped. She turned almost sleepily and stepped over to Yugi raising the lamp.

"Yugi! Move!" Jonouchi scrambled toward his friend, but Isis brought the lamp down hard.

**Seth**

The world swam in and out of focus as he staggered to his feet, almost tumbling back to the floor. His head ached with a pounding, blinding intensity, and his legs didn't want to support him anymore. His pharaoh and Bakura were gone. He hoped that they were either confronting Akenaden, or already finished with the fight. The alternatives didn't seem as comforting. He wobbled over to a wall, leaning on it for support as he forced his eyes to focus on the door ahead of him. He wasn't thrilled with the large burn mark on the carpet in front of the door. Nor was he happy with the silence.

He staggered toward the door, wincing as a sharp pain drove itself into his side. The residual power of the burn mark whispered of another seal like the one that had taken down Marik. Seth closed his eyes tiredly. _That would explain why there aren't any people around. It would take the power of a dozen priests, but the lives of a couple dozen employees would serve just as well._ He pushed open the door.

Yami was laying on his side. His hands limply laying around his head, as if he'd been trying to ward off a blow. Across the desk, Pegasus, or more accurately, his father sat looking at him steadily.

"I wondered if you were going to show up." Akenaden's voice was cold.

Seth would have nodded if he could, as it was, he stepped carefully over to a chair and sat down. "You wanted my attention." He wondered if he would be able to get up again, then pushed the thought away. "What, after five thousand years, is so important that you couldn't let me stay dead."

"I want you to do what you were born to do." His father's eyes narrowed. "You were born to rule this world. To drown it in the darkness. That time has come."

"Father." Seth looked around the room. "This isn't our world. It isn't our time."

"You sound like him." Akenaden nodded to where Yami lay. "But it can be ours. There is no reason for it not to be."

Seth slumped, the Rod falling from numb fingers. He could feel it. The power of the Eye, pulling, not his soul, but his will out of him. Last time, only Kisara had been able to save him, to pull his lost soul back to the light. But now his dragons were locked away in the Shadows.

"Father, let it go. We're memories. We should stay that way." Seth grabbed on for something to keep himself from slipping into the darkness he could sense tugging at his mind. "Did you really sacrifice so much to save Egypt, just to destroy it yourself?"

"You were born to do this." Akenaden stood up, ignoring him. "You robbed me last time, but this time, you will do as I command."

"Father…"

**Apartment- Only one hikari left!**

Jonouchi shoved Isis back before she could hit Yugi again. The smaller teen lay on the floor, with a jagged gash across one temple. _Yug, be alright. Yami needs you to be alright._ But the little light didn't even twitch.

"Jo!" Mokuba called.

Jonouchi glanced over and grinned when the black haired child held up a pair of cuffs.

"Found them in Yugi's room." Mokuba threw them to him.

He caught them out of the air and kicked Isis in the stomach, sending her sprawling. "Find some more, or get some rope."

Mokuba nodded picking up a coil of rope from the floor. "Found it in Grandpa's room."

"Grandpa?!"

Speaking of which, Honda was starting to turn colors and his struggles were weakening. Jo mentally apologized to the closest thing he had to a grandfather, and kicked out again, this time aiming for Solomon's kidneys. The old man groaned and buckled, allowing Jo to pull him off Honda, who rolled away gulping for air.

Mai and Kiaba were still struggling with Duke. It seemed every time they got the other pinned, Duke wiggled free to strike. Isis was slowly climbing to her feet, still clutching the lamp in her hand and focusing solely on Yugi's unmoving body.

Jo grunted as Solomon regained enough to pull free and drive his fist into Jo's stomach. The blond tumbled over Ryou, who was still unconscious on the floor and fell sprawling on top of Duke. Kaiba yanked him off and shoved him aside.

"Here. Use these." Jo pressed the cuffs into Kiaba's hands, then dove at Solomon's knees, bringing the elder down with a crash onto the coffee table.

Kaiba arched an eyebrow at the cuffs, then looked quickly around for something to cuff Duke to. An evil grin spread across his face as one solution popped into his head. He nodded to Mai, then nodded back to Isis. Mai blinked, then nodded.

Jonouchi rolled as Solomon rounded on him and tried to return the kick Jo had given him. Honda, still wheezing, grabbed Solomon's leg and pulled him off balance.

"Kid, we need that rope!" Jo grabbed it as Mokuba tossed it then was relieved to see the child race back up the stairs, hopefully to find other illicit goodies lurking around.

Jo made a quick loop and caught one of Solomon's arms, slipping it over his wrist and tightening it. Grandpa turned from Honda to Jo, his blank eyes focusing on the rope.

"Honda, his other arm." Jo brought his knee up hard, driving it into Solomon's stomach.

Honda shoved from behind, sending Grandpa down again. Jo quickly caught the other arm and tied it tight. The elder thrashed trying to break free, but Honda shifted his weight pinning him down while Jo caught a flailing ankle and looped that into the bindings.

Kaiba had gotten the cuff around Duke's right arm and watched as Mai yanked Isis off her feet by her hair. The woman's slender ankle kicked by him, and he grabbed it, quickly snapping the other end of the cuff around it. It wouldn't hold the two down, but it would definitely slow them. He took a second to check around. Jo was trussing up the elder Motou. Yugi was laying with blood coating his face. Ryou was somewhat trampled, and Malik had been knocked off the couch and was now laying half under the coffee table. Anzu was groggily working her way back to the waking world and his little brother was standing at the foot of the stairs holding what looked like bondage gear. He did love his little brother.

**Seth**

It was dark. He remembered this darkness, the cold, dead weight of it pressing down, pressing him flat. His father stood next to him. His face corrupted and ravaged by the darkness that had consumed him millennia ago.

"Father." His voice was barely a whisper. "Don't do this. This world…"

"Is ours." Akenaden smirked down at him. "Let go Seth. Stop struggling against your destiny."

Seth shook forcing himself up to his knees. "Father. This isn't destiny…"

Akenaden laughed. "Yes, Seth it is. Why deny it. Revel in it." He spread his arms as if embracing the darkness that surrounded them. "Let go Seth, and I will spare him."

Seth looked up, the darkness spinning around him. "No."

"I will spare Seto, and I'll even let you keep the blond Jonouchi, and the brat." Akenaden stroked his hair. "Give me what I want, and you can have everything you want."

"Seto…my light." The darkness pressed down, and Seth slumped to the floor. _Seto…_

Apartment

It looked like a bondage scene gone terribly wrong. Isis, Duke, and Solomon were trussed together in a mélange of bondage gear, handcuffs, rope, and duct tape. Unconscious hikaris littered the floor. Furniture was broken and overturned, and five teens lay sprawled in a weary poses across what furniture still survived.

"I feel good." Jo commented from the coffee table. "Nothing like getting the shit beaten out of you to pull you out of a funk."

Honda coughed from the arm chair. "Take note of that Kaiba."

Kaiba poking at his lip and trying to decide whether he should get up off the couch and get some ice, nodded. "Noted."

Mai cuddling a still woozy Anzu sighed. "We need to do something about Yugi."

Jonouchi rolled off the coffee table with a thump and crawled tiredly over to his small friend. "Head wounds bleed a lot. Gotta get all this cleaned up before I can tell how bad it is."

A smooth voice answered. "It's bad enough."

Shadi stood in the middle of the living room looking at the carnage. "I seem to be a bit late."

Mai nodded. "Can you…"

Shadi stepped over wreckage and gently picked Yugi up. "I'll take him upstairs. I'll need a few things."

Mokuba slipped in from the kitchen holding a kitchen towel wrapped around a bag of ice and some bandages. "Ice Boy comes through."

The two trotted up the stairs, leaving the others to contemplate Ryou and Malik's unmoving forms. Jo rolled onto his back and grinned up at Kaiba.

"I was going to say when we get home, let's go to bed and not get up till next spring, but that's not likely is it." Jo looked up the stairs towards the beds.

"Thank you for reminding me." Kaiba let his head roll back to the back of the couch and closed his eyes. He had a headache, not surprising considering how many times Duke had punched him, but he wanted pain killers, lots of pain killers.

Jo closed his eyes and let himself drift in the after the fight let down, feeling his body patiently explain to him, yet again, that fighting was not fun. Fighting was something his tired body wanted no part in for the foreseeable future. He lolled to his feet and stood looking around. Mai and Kaiba were wrecked. Honda was no better, and he was sure if he looked in a mirror he'd look like a crash dummy in one of those after the accident pictures they showed in drivers ed.

Kaiba winced, his headache growing. He tried to lift his head up to suggest to Jo that they head upstairs and leave the clean up to Shadi, but there was no strength behind the movement. He felt drained.

_Seto…_

Seth's voice was barely a whisper across his mind.

_Seto, my light…_

_Seth. Seth?_

The contact faded, leaving him alone with the knowledge that all the other hikaris were unconscious. Two having just collapsed and one being… hopefully… knocked out.

_Seth! Damn it answer me!_

He couldn't even sense Seth's presence lurking at the edges of his mind. He forced his eyes open. Jo looked like he was napping. Mai was busy with Anzu, and Honda was sprawled bonelessly in the chair rubbing his throat. Mokuba was upstairs with Shadi. Isis, Solomon, and Duke were going nowhere. He closed his eyes and willed himself into his soulroom.

He pushed into Seth's room, and staggered back. The temple was filled with shadows that slithered through the columns and corrupted the statues of the gods that set in their alcoves. A few tendrils reached out for him, but he dodged them and ran for the stairs.

"Seth! Where are you?"

He found the door to the small bedroom, and pushed it open, but there was no small comfortable room room with its narrow bed inside. Instead a seemingly endless chamber greeted him with more tendrils of the darkness. He could hear someone speaking, someone who was not Seth.

"Why do you fight? You know you want this." The voice whispered. It sounded like an older, rougher version of Seth's voice. It had the same lilts and drawls as his yami's voice.

"No. I do not." Seth's voice was hardly more than a pained whisper in the darkness. "I never…"

"You never wanted this? This?" The other voice mocked.

Seth made a choked cry.

_Seth!_

_Seto… no…_

"You owe me." The other voice slithered around darkly. "I gave you everything."

Seto stepped into the room. The wisps of darkness drifted towards him, licking at him, then retreating. He paused listening.

_Seth, where are you?_

_Seto. Get out... I can't…_

"I gave up my position, my honor, my soul. All for you." The dark voice murmered.

Seto stepped towards that voice. He could feel Seth. His darkness was struggling against something. Seto followed the feeling.

"Father… I never…asked…" Seth's voice was broken into small gasps.

The voice turned vicious. "Ungrateful whelp."

He could feel the pain as Seth got hit. It made him stumble falling to the floor with a small thump.

"Who's there?" The dark voice sharpened. "It's your little hikari, isn't it?"

"No…don't…" Seth was struggling.

Seto gritted his teeth and got back to his feet. He quickly and quietly paced to the right, away from the place he'd fallen.

"Do as I say, Seth, and maybe I won't destroy him." The voice was approaching where he had been.

Seto slipped quietly through the shadows, heading towards where Seth's voice had come from. His yami was on the floor, struggling to get to his elbows. He looked over to Seto and shook his head.

_No, don't. He can kill you._

_Seth._

_The Rod. Get the Rod._

_How?_

And he was there. Pegasus was standing in front of him with the Millenium Eye glowing in his face, looking not so much at him as through him. Glancing around he noted he was not in Industrial Illusions' head office. A place he'd been to for a few business meetings. Over to one side, Yami was on the floor, his posture mimicking that of his fallen hikari. Most importantly, the Rod was laying on the floor next to the chair. He reached down and felt a sudden swoop of dizzying pain.

"I guess I'm not the only one to have a hard day." He grimaced and grabbed the Rod.

_Got it. Now what?_

He was back. Seth was laying at his feet, his eyes closed. Unfortunatly, Akenaden was also there too.

"Give me that!" Akenaden grabbed for the Rod.

Seto stepped back, shaking his head. "Not a chance."

The corrupted priest snarled and made a small gesture to the surrounding darkness. Seth gasped as something shook through him.

"Give me that or you get to see him ripped apart." Akenaden hissed, stretching out his hand, demanding the Rod.

_Seto…come…_

Seto stepped closer to his dark and knelt down.

"I said give it to me!" Akenaden made another gesture, but Seth's hand was already on the Rod.

"No." Seth pulled himself up to face his father. "The Rod is mine."

"You are mine." Akenaden's Eye gleamed brighter in the gloom. "You belong to the darkness. You have always belonged to it."

Tendrils of shadow slithered closer, winding around Seto's legs. Seto growled and tried to shake them off, but it was like trying to shake off smoke.

"He's not holding the Rod, Seth." Akenaden suddenly smiled as the shadows slipped tighter. "And you have to admit, your little hikari isn't in the best of shape to begin with."

Seth's lips tightened. "Enough father."

The Rod gleamed as Seth raised it, stepping between Seto and Akenaden. Akenaden laughed, and the shadows gathered. The ones holding Seto suddenly yanked him back, covering him instantly in smothering darkness.

"Ah, well. Too late." Akenaden grinned. "If you drop the Rod and behave, you might still have the blond and the child."

Seth shook his head. "No." He walked forward. He could still feel Seto struggling in the dark with the shadows. "You never knew when to shut up did you old man." He wanted Akenaden's attention focused on himself and away from Seto. "All my life, even before I knew you were my father, I thought you were a long winded bore."

Akenaden's eyes narrowed. "Brat." The shadows hissed closer to him. "I'm glad I killed that bitch that whelped you."

Seth didn't flinch as he stepped closer, but the blow hit. _You killed her? Why? Were you so lost even then?_ He slid his mind into the Rod, tugging the ancient magics into the form he wanted of them. "You really are pathetic."

Akenaden's eye gleamed and Seth felt something rush towards him, he raised the Rod and the attack shattered around him. "Nice try."

"I wasn't aiming at you." Akenaden laughed. "I knew you'd do that. I planned on it."

Seth reached out. _Seto?_

Silence. No struggle. No fighting. Just quiet.

"Drop the Rod, Seth." Akenaden's voice was a purr. "Maybe you can still save him."

Seth shook his head. "No."

Akenaden gave him a small gentle smile. "Without him you have nothing. Less then nothing." He stepped forward. "You will be so easy to break."

Seth shook his head, stepping back. _Seto? Seto!_

"He's gone now." Akenaden was in front of him, reaching out to touch his face. "Now stop this and behave."

Seth desperately searched for his light, but there was nothing. "Seto…"

"I tried to warn you." Akenaden's fingers caressed along his jaw. "You just wouldn't listen."

_Seto!_

"Give me the Rod." Akenaden's voice was gentle. "You never really wanted it, so why all the fuss?"

_Hikari…_There was one last thing. He had one last thing to do. While Akenaden was here, focused on him, he still could do it. It was after all his duty. Then he could go and find his light, wherever Seto had gone.

He was there instantly, still seated in the office chair, his head aching. Pegasus stood in front of him, a small smile lurking on his lips. He moved quickly, before Akenaden could react. He reached out with the Rod and pulled.

Akenaden's soul shrieked as the Rod yanked him out of the shadows. "Whelp. Brat! You will pay!"

But he had him. Akenaden had been too distracted, too busy gloating, too busy being pleased with his win. He hadn't considered Seth attacking from without. Like all the times he'd done this at Yami's command as they sat in judgment at court, he drew the corrupted soul out of its shell. It writhed in the air, screaming soundlessly all its hate and malice. The statue of the odd looking rabbit caught his attention, and a small smile worked its way to his lips. He gestured with the Rod and the soul seeped into the small thing. When the last wisps were sealed inside, he reached out and pulled the eye from the man standing frozen in front of him.

"Done." He closed his eyes, only half aware of the heavy sound of Pegasus's body falling to the floor. "Seto…"

**Apartment- No hikaris left…**

Jo rolled to his feet and rubbed his sore back. Kaiba was sleeping, his head tipped back against the couch. Mai and Anzu were collapsed on the other end. Honda was snoring softly from the chair. Upstairs he could hear Mokuba and Shadi talking in low voices.

He reached over and shook Kiaba. "Come on. Help me with Ryou and Malik and we can go sleep in a bed."

Kiaba just lolled lifelessly to the side.

"Kaiba?" Jo shook him harder. "Kaiba! Wake up!"

"Jo stop yelling." Mai blinked sleepily at him.

Jo didn't listen. Kaiba wasn't just pale, he was grey and Jo couldn't see him breathing. "Kaiba, you're scaring the hell out of me!"

Mai carefully pushed Anzu aside. "What is it?" She reached over, pressing her fingers against Kaiba's neck. "Shit. No pulse."

"Seto!" Jo pulled him down to the floor. "Don't do this to me. Do you hear me! Don't you dare!"

"What is it? Big Brother?" Mokuba's voice was panicked as he rushed down the stairs followed by Shadi.

Jo shoved Kaiba over onto his back, his mind trying to remember those CPR classes he'd slept through to get out of P.E.

Mai shoved him out of the way. "Go call an ambulance."

Shadi hauled him back and took his place as Mai tipped Kaiba's head back. "You know this?"

"Yeah."

Jo backed away as they started, his eyes darting around for a phone. _Kitchen. There's one in the kitchen._ He bolted for it, nearly trampling over Mokuba who was standing in stunned horror, watching someone else do his brother's breathing for him.

He didn't remember the trip through the kitchen, or yanking the phone off its holder, but he dithered a second before his fingers hit the correct numbers for emergency services.

**Seth**

He was floating downwards. He didn't know how else to describe the feeling. It wasn't necessarily painful, just distantly odd. The only thing he didn't like was the commentary.

"He's an idiot."

"At least he didn't step on a stupid seal, Tomb Robber."

"Is he going to be okay?"

"Tenshi, don't touch that. The water isn't actually water."

"Oh."

"Where's Kaiba?"

_Yes. Where is my light?_ He floated.

"We could try to put him back into Kiaba's body."

"He'd have to do that. If we could, I would have shoved you into a goldfish long ago."

"So he can do it and we can't?"

"Inanimate objects, thief. That means the ones that don't move."

"Fuck you pharaoh."

"Maybe we should go find Kaiba?"

"Good idea, Ryou. Get moving Tomb Robber."

"Why me?"

"You want to sit here?"

Silence. It was so much nicer to float in silence. He relaxed back into it with a weary sigh. _Seto? Where are you?_ He felt himself sink further down, back to the long sleep he'd drifted in for thousands of years. _I need to find Seto first._ He struggled up.

A glowing willow spread itself above him. Against the trunk, Yami sat gently running his fingers through a sleeping Yugi's hair.

"Feel better?" Yami looked at him intently.

"No." Seth pulled himself up to sit. It took effort. "Seto's gone."

"Maybe." Yami leaned back. "He was technically in your soulroom. It's hard to really kill someone's soul while it is basically encompassed by their own soul." He frowned up at the branches. "However, if anyone could have done it, Akenaden would have been the one to know how."

Seth closed his eyes, nodding. "He was gone so fast I didn't even feel him pass."

"Hmmm." Yami tipped his head. "Maybe, but maybe not."

"What?" Seth opened his eyes, a wary bit of hope glittering in them.

"You should have felt that. If you didn't…"

"He's alive."

"Now, where is he?" Yami pursed his lips thoughtfully then grinned. "What is the one place we know that a yami cannot hear his light?"

"The Shadows." Seth pulled himself to his feet. "I need to go find my dragons."

Yami nodded. "As soon as Yugi is better, I'll join you."

**Hospital**

The room was supposedly the most advanced and luxurious one the hospital had to offer. It didn't really matter. Who cared that the picture on the wall was a real water color from a prominent artist? Did the occupant really even notice that the bed was a bit more padded then the ones in the other rooms? Did the state of the art entertainment system distract from the steady, monotonous beeping of life support equipment?

Jo sat in an more luxurious version of the hard vinyl chairs that littered the less opulent rooms and held Kaiba's still, cold hand. His love had barely made it to the hospital. They'd managed to restart his heart before transporting him in the ambulance and had quickly hooked him up to a respirator, but it did nothing to bring him back.

Mokuba was curled asleep in another chair. He'd considered having Honda dragging the kid out, but… what if?

He looked back to Kaiba. The brunet's head was tipped back, allowing the respirator tub to fit down his throat. Wires snaked around him, disappearing under the flimsy blue hospital gown they'd put him in, keeping track of a weak heartbeat.

They'd taken x-rays, catscans, MRI's, and dozens of tests involving needles and small vials of blood, but so far the results kept coming back negative. All signs kept saying Kaiba should be awake and alive, not laying unmoving attached to tubes.

The only good news was that Grandpa, Isis, and Duke had woken up, sore, puzzled, and not remembering anything more than shadowy memories of being someplace dark. Yugi was doing better too. Still not entirely conscious, but he would give sleepy answers to his grandfather's worried questions. Ryou was still not back from wherever he'd gone. The doctors had run a few tests and decided to keep him under observation till he woke up. Malik had disappeared along with Shadi a few moments after the ambulance crew took over CPR from him and Mai.

Jonouchi shivered in the hospital cold and reached over to pull Kaiba's blanket up further. He gasped as blue eyes opened and looked at him.

"Kaiba?"

The brunet shook his head.

"Seth?"

The blue eyes closed as Seth nodded.

"Is Seto okay?" Jonouchi leaned over the other, touching his cheek to get his attention.

Another head shake.

"Is he awake?" A nurse appeared in the door. She hurried over and checked the monitors. Seth shook his head again, fighting the tub down his throat. "Calm down, Mr. Kaiba. I'll call the doctor." She pushed the call button on the side of the bed.

Jonouchi stepped back as a small herd of medical personnel rushed in.

Mokuba startled awake during the stampede and looked around terrified. "What happened? Big Brother?"

"He just woke up." Jo pulled him aside as some of the herd reversed direction and trampled out again.

It took a few minutes of high tech medical rushing, but eventually Seth was sitting, tube free looking around at the sterile room. Jonouchi and Mokuba, giving the last of the rushing medics a cautious look, approached the bed.

"Where's Big Brother?" Mokuba was between frozen panic and a Kiaba meltdown, making his eyes huge, while his lips thinned into a scowl.

"I don't know." Seth's voice was hardly more than a harsh whisper thanks to the tube. "I need to go find him." He looked uneasily at Jo. "I just wanted you to know."

"Where are you going to look?"

"The Shadow Realm."

Yuai, Ledower, Kallon

"It's almost obscene." Ledoer glowered at the cooing dragons that had landed on Kaiba the second the brunet had been yanked out of danger.

"Would you rather they go back to moping around?" Kallon was sitting in a chair rubbing his temples.

Ledowr growled and stalked out of the room and its happy dragon pile, leaving Kallon to deal with it. His wife was still stuck in the middle of painting an ornate swirl of design that had to be completed by noon time if the binding spell was going to work properly. He considered going to spend a few quality moments gently tormenting her, but veered off to where E'on was still staring wide eyed out the window.

"If he's here, Seth is going to follow. Go find him." Ledowr gave the small dragon a sharp kick.

E'on looked sorrowfully up at him. "Will Master be there too?"

"Just get going." Ledowr gave him another kick then added to get the dragon out the door. "He might be, but if you don't go, we won't know will we?"

That worked. E'on was out the door and in flight in seconds. Ledowr gave a small happy sigh and wandered off to play with his wife.

"Humans are high maintenance." He stalked into the room, watching as Yuai sat back and rubbed her nose, smearing a bit of blue paint on her dress.

"So are you." She bit her lip as she studied the design. "Does this look right to you?"

He picked up the book and compared the two. "Yes. Finished?"

She nodded and carefully got to her feet. "I thought you'd be happy with the dragons out of your way."

"They're laying on top of him writhing around." He frowned. "It looks like an orgy."

"You're just grumpy because you didn't get any last night." She delicately picked her way out of the design. "It's not their fault you were too busy to get to bed."

He crossed his arms and scowled. "I'm not busy now."

"How romantic." His wife stepped free of their work and came over to him. "How can I resist?"

He looked suspiciously around, then caught her by her waist and pulled her against him. "I'll be romantic later." He dipped his head down, capturing her lips.

"Ahem."

They both looked up at Kallon, who stood in the door. Ledowr glared death at him.

The older magician shook his head. "As sorry as I am to interrupt this touching moment. He's awake."

"Kaiba was awake when I left. Buried under dragons, but awake." Ledower sulked as Yuai pulled away.

"Not him… Him."

"Oh."

**Seth**

"Are you sure he's alright?" E'on pestered for the tenth time in five minutes.

Seth petted him, urging him to go faster. "Yes, he's fine. He's just worried about Seto."

"Oh, nothing to worry about there." E'on stretched out further, his wings flaring out into a flatter plain. "We've been watching and as soon as we saw Master Seto get sucked into those shadow things the Blue Eyes called Lord Kallon."

Seth nodded, letting himself rest against the dragon's scales. He could almost feel it, the soft whisper of Seto's mind against his. "I was worried."

E'on cooed. The outlines of the castle were already coming into focus on the horizon, and E'on dipped lower, gliding over the city beneath and catching the thermal to land in the castle courtyard. Koori was standing on the step waiting for him as he slipped down E'on's shoulder to land on the cobble stones.

"Welcome home, Master." Koori came to his side brushing against him. "Master Seto is in the bedroom you were in before. Lord Kallon wanted to wish you a warm welcome as well, but he's busy with a small emergency. Lady Yuai and Lord Ledowr are also trying to deal with it."

Seth nodded, not really caring if he got a reception. All he wanted was his light.

_Seto._

_Seth?_ Seto's voice was clear, bright, and soothing to his stressed mind. _Seth how do I get the dragons off?!_

Seth smiled and walked up the stairs to the bedroom. He opened the door to find Seto pinned to the bed by an ecstatic Shimo and Kisara. He looked over to Koori. "You know you can't keep him."

"Seth! Get them off!" Kaiba yelled trying to break free of the two.

Koori nodded, blissfully stalking his master, "But we have you both for a little while."

* * *

Authoress and her tired muses consider proofreading the chapter, then collapse. I'll do it another day. Just the epilog to go, and I hope to get it out to y'all soon. Thank you for the reviews, I'll try and answer them next time. 


	30. Afterwards

**Psyche**

**Chapter 30: Afterwards**

* * *

**OCs**

**Ahmose:** (Egyptian for: The moon is born) Yami's son back in Egypt.

**E'on:** Jonouchi's Red Eyes Black Dragon.

**Jame:** Kaiba's obsessive-compulsively organized secretary who wants to be fired.

**Kallon:** The Dark Sage and one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, though he tries hard not to be.

**Kisara:** The only female Blue Eyes White Dragon. (Not really an OC)

**Koori:** (Japanese for: Ice) The largest male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Ledowr:** The Magician of Black Chaos, also one of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, and is trying even harder not to be. He is also Yuai's husband.

**Pepi:** Yami's third wife back in Egypt.

**Shimo:** (Japanese for: Frost) The other male Blue Eyes White Dragon.

**Yuai:** One of the three rulers of the Shadow Realm, but she's been slacking lately. She is married to Ledowr.

* * *

**Jonouchi**

He loved the decks. The house sat on the side of a cliff overlooking the ocean. From the back of the house, decks descended down the rock face, each offering some amenity. One had a wet bar, another had a fireplace built right into the cliff side, another had a hot tub, another had a barbeque, the lowest one had a diving platform to dive into the swirling waters below. He could spend his life out on the decks.

Mokuba was in love with the game room with its state of the art electronics, the private movie theater complete with popcorn vending machine, and the swimming pool that had been designed to look like a series of water grottos out of Pirates of the Caribbean. He had also enthused about his prospective bedroom that had a panoramic view of the ocean.

Kaiba had looked at the home office, the library, and the security system and made a few approving sounds, but had spent a few long worrying minutes frowning at the decks Jonouchi adored. The real estate agent, seeing her nearly unbelievable commission become endangered had leapt to the decks' defense and was now all but singing arias about all their safety features.

Kaiba's secretary Jame, who had scouted the house, was in the kitchen inspecting it for efficiency. She'd pointed out all the features she thought were important for Kaiba to consider: the helipad, so he could get to work easily without fighting traffic; the built in security lockers for neatly storing important work; the easy access to major traffic arteries to ease any commute by car; and the well thought out floor plan.

Jo climbed back up to the upper most deck smiling hopefully, "How about it?"

"Mokuba could fall." Kaiba glowered at the railings of the decks.

"The decks are all well protected with guard railings." The real estate agent caroled. "The space between the slats is well within all safety guidelines, further, the upper decks come with plexiglass retaining sheets that bolt into the rails for extra protection. They were taken down for cleaning, but will be replaced before escrow closes."

Kaiba nodded, still not looking entirely convinced. He knew his brother and plexiglass was hardly likely to deter Mokuba from trying to dive into the surf from the upper decks. His mind conjured images of all the things his little brother could do with those decks, many of which would keep him up at night sweating.

"Ah, give me a break." Mokuba ambled over from his careful inspection of the pirate cove of a swimming pool. "It's not like I have the career aspiration of becoming an Acapulco cliff diver."

Kaiba eyed him, "You could slip."

"So could you," Mokuba crossed his arms, "in the bathroom. Should we take those out?"

Kaiba grunted, but Jo noticed the slight softening in his shoulders that clearly said the decks were approved. Mokuba whooped and raced back to the pool. The real estate agent looked like Nirvana had opened up and invited her in.

"Okay." Kaiba took another look at the deck. "I'll take it, but I want the plexiglass back and an all season nonslip surface on those decks."

"Of course, Mr. Kaiba." The real estate agent nearly glowed. "I'll have all the paperwork sent to your office today."

Jame drifted over, "Don't bother. I"ll pick it up. That way I can make sure it's all in order." She sidled over to Kaiba. "We have to go. The meeting with the city planning commission for breaking ground on the new tower will begin in thirty five minutes."

Kaiba nodded briskly and turned calling for Mokuba as he strode back through the mansion to the car. Jo sighed happily at the decks then trotted after him.

"Admit it, you love it." Jonouchi slipped his arm through Kiaba's. "You'll have the ocean right out the bedroom window."

Kaiba snorted, but a small grin lurked around the corners of his mouth. "Why would that appeal to me?"

"Maybe because you love to look at the bay when you're thinking?" Jo smiled, "Or did you think I never noticed."

"The view from the office isn't bad either." Kaiba tipped his head thoughtfully. "It looks over the decks, so I can keep an eye on you and Mokuba."

"Or we can keep an eye on you." Jo tapped a kiss against the brunet's lips, then scampered off to where Mokuba was calling and pointing to a tall pirate flag.

Kaiba smirked at it, "Fitting…"

**Yugi, Yuai, Honda, Ryou, and Anzu**

"I've got Human Biology in the Seaman's complex, after History of Folklore." Anzu looked at her computer print out.

Yugi, biting his lip worriedly, scrutinized his schedule. "I think I need to get to English after it, but the building name says Lower Portables, where are the Lower Portables?"

"My art class only says TBA," Yuai, looking like her old, normal, nondescript self looked around the college campus. "Did anyone here hear any announcements?"

Honda shook his head. "Not me. I'm still trying to figure out where SS&B 320 is. Last I saw the SS&B building only has one floor and all the classrooms are in the 100s."

It was the first day of college. While they had all managed to get the same History of Folklore class, that counted as four units for the confusing Width and Breadth category of their requirements, they, like most new college students and many of the older ones, where lost in the sea of oddly placed classes, communications that were never communicated, and buildings that may or may not truly exist except in the minds of harried administrators who forgot things like demolishing the Lower Portables last semester to make way for the new tennis courts.

Ryou came running up. "I found it! The Auxiliary Annex is over by the dorms behind the maintenance building."

"They really want you to attend that one, don't they?" Anzu sighed and hefting her bookpack over her shoulders began the trek to the other side of the campus.

Honda helped Yuai and Yugi get their packs on then headed after her, only to be stopped by his cell phone. He flipped it opened, grinned, and hit the answer button. "Hey Jo, how's My-Lame-Ass-Didn't-Graduate School…I mean tutoring?" He listened, his smile growing wider. "Oh, poor baby. You're gonna suffer so with all those decks. Just don't slip off." Honda paused then laughed. "Well, great you can go splat on the protective thingies then…oh before I forget, do you mind if I bring Ribbon…? Okay, thanks."

Yugi waved motioning that the rest were going on ahead as Honda kept talking. Ryou was poking around in his pack as they walked.

"I can't find it. I know it was in here." Ryou muttered then looked up with a sigh. "He keeps stealing my mechanical pencils. I think he's got some weird fixation on them."

"Bakura?"

Ryou shook his head, "No, Malik. Bakura wouldn't steal my things. He only steals from everyone else."

"What's Malik doing in your books?" Anzu pulled a mechanical pencil out of her pack and handed it to the hikari.

"The yamis are trying to unwind Marik from Malik," Ryou's gentle, doe soft eyes narrowed into a rather scary, intense glare. "And for some reason they have to do it in my living room. Do you know how hard it is to explain a melted carpet to the landlord? And the smell…don't even begin to get me going on the smell!"

"Ooookaaay." Anzu backed away then hurried up to catch up with Yuai who was peering suspiciously at the battered, faded sign that marked their destination.

Yugi gave his fellow light a bit more space too. Honda, jogging to catch up, saw the sudden space around Ryou and veered off to stand with the girls.

"Jo's inviting us to a house warming in a couple of weeks." He glanced nervously over his shoulder at the still fuming Ryou. "Kaiba's buying that house on the cliff."

"You mean Kaiba's buying Jonouchi and Mokuba the house on the cliff." Yuai grinned, peering ahead into the gloomy depths of the building. "Why does this place smell like a locker room?"

"…and do you think any of them even think of cleaning up!" Ryou snarled to a cringing Yugi. "Think again. The world will end before you see any of that lot use a vacuum cleaner!"

"This is the place…such as it is." Honda made a sweep of his arm. "Ladies first."

Anzu and Yuai looked doubtful about the honor, but after taking one last gulp of fresh air, they cautiously stepped into the building and started looking for their room number. The guys, Ryou being semi-quieted by the exquisite smell of the building, slunk after them down the hall with its yellowy lights.

"What about you, Yuai, how's the moving coming along." Yugi trotted up to walk next to her, leaving Ryou waving his hand in front of his face as if he could somehow conjure fresh air with the motion.

"Fine. Kallon's staying at the castle; he doesn't want to leave his library, so it's just me and Ledowr. He's gotten a job of some sort." She shrugged. "It'll keep him busy. Want to come over later. You still haven't beaten me at Life."

"I'll pick up some Chinese on the way." Yugi grinned.

"And just what does a Magician of Black Chaos do for a living?" Honda shuffled down the hall, vaguely wondering if there was a gas leak somewhere in the building.

Anzu, opening the door to their class paused then blinked. "He teaches college."

"Huh?" Yuai stepped forward with Yugi, Honda, and Ryou at her heels to peer into their classroom, at their new teacher.

Ledowr, dressed in jeans, a white button down shirt, and a tweed jacket, with his long hair neatly caught back in tie behind his head, and with normal looking pale skin grinned sharkily at his wife from the front of the class. "Get in here and take a seat. I don't tolerate lateness…"

Yuai's mouth dropped open.

Honda moaned, "And I thought high school had been hell…."

**Bakura**

"Well, thank you so much for accepting this position." Jame grinned at the white haired man in front of her. "Mr. Kado, our present head of security will fill you in on your job parameters."

Bakura grinned back, but his smile wasn't as pleasant as Jame's. "No, thank you. I can't tell you how I'm looking forward to starting to work."

Jame nodded. It was a good day. She'd be fired soon. She was sure of it. Mr. Bakura –no first name- was going to take the place of Kado, who had been promoted to head security liaison for Kaiba Corp. Bakura had all the qualifications that the job required. He had an impressive resume, which while highly suspicious, even Kado couldn't disprove. He had an impressive knowledge of security systems and security measures, and he knew Kaiba personally. This had been proved when Kaiba had walked in on the interview and nearly had an aneurism on the spot. However, after all the bitching and odd name calling –why he kept referring to Kaiba as priest was beyond her- Kaiba hadn't said she couldn't hire him, so….

"You'll start next week." Jame's smile grew wider as the beaches of Bermuda beckoned.

Bakura got up and sauntered out the door. "Great. I'll be there."

Bakura paused at Kaiba's office and poked his head in. "See you next week, boss." He walked down the corridor howling with laughter as Kaiba snarled curses behind his back.

It was a great day. He now had a job, which would please Ryou. His little light had been hyperventilating over the bills last night, apparently his father, caring individual that he was, stopped all of Ryou's income now that he was in college. Which really wouldn't have been bad, except the ass hadn't given Ryou any notice, just a message on the answering machine saying he hadn't sent a check and good luck. He'd made a small note to himself that while Ryou was away attending class one day, he'd arrange for something wildly unlucky to happen to dear old dad. Tombs were tricky things, people got hurt all the time, and who knew better than him about how things could go wrong.

Ryou was waiting for him when he got home, fussing around, opening windows, and spraying air freshener everywhere. "Well?"

"I think Kaiba had a stroke." Bakura threw himself on the couch with a happy, if somewhat evil, grin.

Ryou darted around shaking the curtains and spraying them down. "You will behave…won't you. We really need the…"

"Behave? Me?" Bakura patted the couch, and Ryou sat nervously next to him. He gathered his light against him. "Now stop worrying. I don't care if I steal Kaiba blind or if I keep others from doing it. It's the game that's exciting, not the score."

"So…you won't…" Ryou sighed as Bakura stretched back on the couch with him on top.

"Nah. Kaiba would be too easy now that I'm in." He picked up the remote and clicked the VCR on. "It'll be more fun fucking with the asses that are trying to fuck with him." He hit play and turned the TV on. "He's got an impressive list of enemies." Bakura wasn't going to explain the deal he'd made with Seth for the return of the Millennium Eye; one safe hikari for one non-possessed Eye.

Captive Passions cued up and the sadly sweet opening music began playing. Bakura relaxed back, pillowing his head against the arm of the couch as Tad, one of the blond male bimbos that usually sent Ryou into fits of sighs, squeakily talked to Merideth, who had died a squishy death by being pureed in Chelsea's tomato processing vat. As Merideth denounced Tad as a cannibal for eating her –unknowingly- in a delicious rigatoni with mushroom dish as he tried to seduce the ever slutty Raven, Ryou started twitching.

"I'm going to go get some drinks. Would you like a soda?" Ryou slithered nervously off the couch, but Bakura didn't notice as Tad fell to his knees.

"A beer would be nice." Bakura watched entranced as Merideth, snarling retribution, and chucking a tomato at Tad's bowed head for emphasis faded.

Ryou scampered out as Roman's deep commanding voice filled the room, wondering if his darling Jessica would be alright, and bemoaning the fact that he couldn't be at her side since it was daytime and he, a vampire, would become charcoal broiled in seconds if he dared to step into the delivery room, which, for some odd reason, had a large window overlooking the hospital's ornamental fountain. The scene switched into the delivery room, as a sweaty, exhausted, but still perfectly groomed Jessica tiredly reached for her newborn, smiling lovingly as she pulled the blanket aside to take a look at her son's face for the first time.

Bakura grinned as Jessica's lovely smile desolved into a horrified look.

"Oh my god!" Jessica wailed. "He's…he's…." She shoved her son away, into the arms of a sympathetic nurse. "I can't bear it…he's …not normal!"

"I told you. Short, red eyed, and probably has weird hair that sticks up all over." Bakura purred, absently wondering why Ryou wasn't back with his beer.

"No one has hair like that!" Jessica swooned back on the hospital bed. "It's unnatural! And his eyes! No, please it can't be my baby!" She started sobbing.

Bakura took a deep satisfied breath. "Yep. Inbred. It does odd things."

In the kitchen, Ryou contemplated if he could get out the window. There was a ledge bellow it, so just maybe…

"The poor child…" The nurse rocked the now crying infant. "Even his own mother… He'll be ridiculed all his life."

"Or become a pharaoh." Bakura made a contented little stretch.

"Just look at him! His hair juts up all over!" Jessica got over her swoon and started crying. "And no one, no one has dark skin, blue eyes and white hair! No one!"

"What." Bakura sat up, glaring at the TV as they showed a small baby with a tiny scrunched face, a wild tangle of white spiky hair, caramel brown skin, and crystal blue eyes.

Ryou cringed as the sounds of the TV getting abruptly sent to the Shadow Realm reached his ears.

**Seth**

The dragons were in heaven. After returning to the mortal realm and overseeing his light's recovery, he'd returned to the Shadows to prepare for Yami's arrival. He had, after seeing the wreck his father had made of Pegasus, chosen to bring the man with him, hoping to find a way to help the man. He hadn't realize in doing so, he was also bringing the only other person alive, besides him and his hikari, to call the Blue Eyes forth in battle. The dragons had greeted him, done a double take, and hauled the only semi-aware Pegasus off for intensive cuddling, and if half the things that wandered through Koori's or Shimo's mind came about, he had no doubts that Pegasus would be more than cuddled once he was well enough to give even a semi-coherent assent.

"Are you sure he's coming?" Kallon looked worn out. His normally spotless robes were stained with a variety of foods after a long and difficult lunch.

Seth nodded. Kallon had been busy dealing with his lunchtime ordeal and hadn't consulted the bird bath of sight.

"He's on his way." Seth glanced over from where he stood watching Koori and Shimo carefully feed Pegasus small berries as the trio sprawled contentedly against the courtyard fountain.

Kallon nodded, pulling a bit of food out of his beard. "Mystic will have him all nice and clean by the time the pharaoh arrives."

Seth helpfully pulled a squash-like vegetable out of Kallon's hair. "He'll be here any moment. Go rest."

Kallon didn't need any further encouragement and took off for his own quarters. Seth watched him retreat then turned back to the window. Seto and Jonouchi were going to arrive too. He hadn't seen his light in days, and could feel the strain. Unlike the pharaoh, he didn't have mood swings. Nor was he becoming murderous, as they feared Bakura would become if deprived of Ryou. Instead, he became sleepy, his mind trying to fade back to the endless sleep that he'd wrapped himself in for millennia.

He shook himself free of his thoughts as Jonouchi's bright, energetic voice yelled a greeting from the main entrance.

"Hey, Seth! You home?" Jonouchi, with his rapturous Red Eyes faithfully following him, bounded into the main hall. His long blond hair tangled down his back in a bright spray of golden light.

Seto ambled behind smiling at Kisara who was happily hugging him. "Seth?" _Seth, where are the others?_

Seth smiled. _Out in the courtyard with Pegasus. I told them only one could greet you at a time._

_Thanks. Wait… Pegasus?_

Seth walked down the stairs towards the main level. Yami strode into the hall, brushing his hair back with a tired hand. The sound of small feet racing down the stairs behind him alerted Seth to step aside. He smiled back as the footsteps came closer.

Yami paused at the door. While Jonouchi and Kaiba may have gotten a thrill out of riding here on the back of a dragon, he found the experience disturbing. Perhaps because of all the times he'd faced Kaiba's dragons across the battlefield. Not to mention sitting on dragon scales was uncomfortable. He rubbed his abused posterior with a grimace, noticing Seth suddenly step to one side of the staircase while looking back up it with a small smile.

"Seth, is Kallon…"

He started then stopped as a small figure raced down the last sweep of stairs, heading straight for him. The little one smiled, a big smile of pure happiness as small hands reached for him. Tiny feet pattered across the stone floor. Ruby red eyes that matched his laughed.

Yami raced forward, not asking or questioning, just reaching out, scooping the child up, clutching him close, close, close, feeling the tiny, body wiggle, as small sturdy arms wrapped around his neck in a joyous hug.

"Papa home!"

"Yes, Ahmose. Papa home."

* * *

And so the story ends. I would say and they all lived happily ever after, but happily ever after sounds so boring, so I will say, and they lived the best they could, counted themselves fortunate, and when troubles arose, they faced it together, bitching, complaining, sniping, dragging their feet at times, getting hurt, but still in the end together.

* * *

Thank you to all my readers, whether you have reviewed or not. I also thank the readers who will stumble on this story in the future and perhaps leave a comment or two. If you don't that's okay too. I still appreciate you.

No, I did not answer all the questions. This trilogy is ended, but I will probably post a few more short stories that will be more H.U.G.S. stories than Chrysalis stories. I am already playing with ideas for _H.U.G.S.trek: The Search for Marik_, so if you're wondering why I didn't wind that up, that's the reason. For those of you who want to see more Seto/Seth/Jonouchi, you'll have to wait for _Three's Company_, which is only in preliminary stages, as in I know I will write it, but my Yu-Gi-Oh muses are all comatose. I also know I still have _Tea for Two_, which has turned into _Day of Our Lives_, but I'm tired and need a break from Yu-Gi-Oh. I'm off to the land of Kenshin and tormenting characters out of Final Fantasy 7 with bad clothes.

Again, thank you!

Tamlin


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